Do you want to separate, amend a parenting plan or find out whether maintenance should be recalculated? The existing arrangements and the change in your situation determine which next step may be appropriate. An earlier settlement agreement (convenant) or a court decision is therefore an important starting point. From our office in Utrecht you can discuss your family law question with Arslan Advocaten.
What can we assess your question on?
You can contact us about separation, maintenance, arrangements concerning children, parental authority and the financial settlement of your relationship. Read the explanation of divorce or choose your topic in the overview of family law.
Do you live together without being married or in a registered partnership? Then also bring any cohabitation agreement. The settlement of a jointly owned home and of payments does not automatically follow the same rules as in a divorce.
Contact our office in Utrecht
Address: Atoomweg 63, 3542 AA Utrecht. Telephone: 030 747 00 38. You can also contact us via the website. Mention any hearing date or other specific deadline.
For a substantive engagement, the work and the costs are discussed. Also read the explanation of costs and possible legal aid. Choosing our office does not automatically determine which court will hear your case; separate rules on jurisdiction apply to that.
In family cases the most important question is usually a practical one: where will my case be heard, and what must the petition contain? Those two questions are answered below. The substantive explanation of divorce, maintenance, parental authority and contact can be found on the pages divorce and family law and is not repeated here.
Which court hears a divorce if you live in Utrecht?
Your divorce is heard by the District Court of Midden-Nederland, Utrecht location, at Vrouwe Justitiaplein 1 — so the court is not named after the city where it sits.
The district is called Midden-Nederland and, under article 7 of the Judicial Divisions Act (Wet op de rechterlijke indeling), covers the provinces of Flevoland and Utrecht, plus the municipalities of Blaricum, Gooise Meren, Hilversum, Huizen, Laren and Wijdemeren.
For family cases, the allocation of cases within that district is not the same for all four court locations. That is where Utrecht stands out. According to the Case Allocation Regulations of the District Court of Midden-Nederland (Zaaksverdelingsreglement rechtbank Midden-Nederland, in force since 1 October 2023, published on rechtspraak.nl), the following applies:
| Type of case | Utrecht | Lelystad | Almere | Amersfoort |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divorce and related matters | yes | yes | yes | no |
| Marriage / partnership | yes | yes | yes | no |
| Parental authority, contact, residence | yes | yes | yes | no |
| Maintenance | yes | yes | yes | no |
| Division / settlement | yes | yes | no | no |
| Other family cases (excl. inheritance law) | yes | yes | no | no |
Amersfoort therefore does not hear divorces; Almere does, but not the division or settlement of assets. Utrecht and Lelystad are the only two court locations that handle the full package. For those living in the city of Utrecht that is not a problem — but it does explain why the hearing of a resident of Amersfoort, for example, takes place in Utrecht.
Territorial jurisdiction follows from article 262 of the Code of Civil Procedure: in petition proceedings, the court of the place of residence of the petitioner or of one of the interested parties named in the petition has jurisdiction. Appeals go to the Court of Appeal of Arnhem-Leeuwarden; article 15 of the Judicial Divisions Act assigns Midden-Nederland to that appeal court’s area, not to the Court of Appeal of Amsterdam.
Do you need a lawyer for a divorce?
Yes — a divorce is not a subdistrict court case, and under article 278(3) of the Code of Civil Procedure the petition must be signed by a lawyer.
That is the difference with tenancy and employment cases, in which you may litigate in person under article 79(1) of the Code of Civil Procedure. Before the district court outside the subdistrict sector, the reverse applies: article 79(2) of the Code of Civil Procedure provides that parties cannot litigate there in person, but only through a lawyer.
You can bring the divorce in two ways. Article 1:150 of the Civil Code: the divorce is pronounced at the request of one of the spouses or at their joint request. With a joint request, one lawyer can act on behalf of both of you; if you disagree, each of you needs a lawyer of your own.
The substantive threshold is low. Article 1:151 of the Civil Code provides that a divorce is pronounced at the request of one of the spouses if the marriage has irretrievably broken down. Blame or fault plays no role; if one of you states that the marriage has irretrievably broken down, that is sufficient in practice. The discussion is almost never about the divorce itself, but about what has to be arranged around it.
What must the petition contain?
If you have minor children together, the petition must contain a parenting plan signed by both spouses — that is a statutory requirement, not a formality. This is laid down in article 815(2) of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Article 815(3) of the Code of Civil Procedure prescribes what that parenting plan must in any event contain:
- the way in which you divide the care and upbringing tasks, or how you give shape to the right and duty of contact;
- the way in which you inform and consult each other on important matters concerning the person and the property of the children;
- the costs of the care and upbringing of the children.
In addition, under paragraph 1 the petition states the details of the other spouse, the name of his or her lawyer if known, and the details of each minor child. Paragraph 4 also requires you to indicate on which of the requested ancillary provisions agreement has been reached and on which there is a difference of opinion, with the grounds for this, and how the children were involved in drawing up the parenting plan.
When filing, article 815(5) of the Code of Civil Procedure requires the submission of, among other things: a copy of or extract from the marriage certificate, a copy of or extract from the birth certificate of each minor child, and the documents relating to any provisional measures.
By way of illustration. Two parents agree on the divorce and want it settled quickly. They file a joint request and agree to "sort out" the division of care "between themselves". The petition then contains no parenting plan, whereas the law requires one where there are joint minor children. If the plan cannot reasonably be submitted, paragraph 6 leaves room to make do with other documents or to provide for it in another way — but that is for the court to assess, and therefore not a route you can count on. Speed here comes through the plan, not around it. This is a hypothetical situation illustrating the rule, not a case handled by our firm.
From what moment is the community of property dissolved?
The matrimonial community of property is dissolved by operation of law at the time the divorce petition is filed — so not at the time of the decision and not at the moment you separated. This is laid down in article 1:99(1)(b) of the Civil Code.
That is the most underestimated date in a divorce. What is earned, saved or acquired after filing no longer falls into the community in principle. What arose before it does in principle — including debts that one of you incurred alone.
The practical consequences of this:
| Before filing | After filing | |
|---|---|---|
| Income and savings | falls into the community | in principle falls outside it |
| New debts | fall into the community | in principle private |
| Change in value of the home | counts | is assessed differently |
Actually separating does not change this. Anyone who lives apart for months or years without filing a petition lets the community continue throughout that time. That is a reason to think about the timing of the filing before you file, not afterwards.
How long does spousal maintenance run?
If the court has not set a term, the obligation to pay spousal maintenance ends by operation of law after a period equal to half the duration of the marriage, with a maximum of five years. This is laid down in article 1:157(1) of the Civil Code.
The law provides two exceptions to that main rule, both for longer marriages:
- If, when the petition was filed, the marriage had lasted longer than fifteen years and the maintenance creditor is no more than ten years younger than the state pension (AOW) age, the obligation does not end before that age is reached (paragraph 2).
- If the marriage lasted longer than fifteen years and the maintenance creditor was born on or before 1 January 1970 and is more than ten years younger than the state pension age, the obligation ends after ten years (paragraph 3).
Child maintenance is entirely separate from this and follows its own regime and its own calculation.
How do you make an appointment with Arslan Advocaten in Utrecht?
Call 030 747 0038 for an appointment at our office at Atoomweg 63, 3542 AA Utrecht; appointments are scheduled Monday to Friday between 09:00 and 17:30.
Atoomweg 63 is our office in Utrecht. You can visit by appointment for a meeting with a lawyer. Do not drop in unannounced; call first.
| Address | Atoomweg 63 |
| Postcode and town | 3542 AA Utrecht |
| Telephone | 030 747 0038 |
| Appointments | Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:30 |
| Type of office | office of Arslan Advocaten; meetings by appointment |
More about the location can be found on the page Utrecht office.
In family cases the conversation itself is often the most important part: what needs to be arranged depends on your situation, not on a standard scheme. When making the appointment, indicate the language in which you would like to hold the meeting, and this will be taken into account in the scheduling.
Outside those hours you can use the form at https://arslan.nl/contact/. Besides Dutch, Arslan Advocaten can also help you in Turkish, Polish and English.