Divorcing abroad, sharīʿah style: Legal reforms and Moroccan women

Abstract

Abstract Against the backdrop of the fast-progressing legal reconfigurations happening in European countries and the Muslim world, this article brings to light two internationally noteworthy yet overlooked scenarios. The first regards the plasticity of the Italian provisions fostering the privatization of family matters via extra-judicial matrimonial dissolution formulae, which potentially accommodate Islamically inspired normativities either by granting legal validity to ex-spouses’ sharīʿah-compliant agreements, or by incorporating potential concessions for the Islamic legal waiting period. The second scenario concerns access to justice for Muslim Moroccan wives, who may strategically seek divorce before Italian tribunals through the implementation of Moroccan family law to benefit from more advantageous interpretations and judicial discretion. In-depth examinations of unpublished legal proceedings reveal an evolving legal vocabulary while documenting strengthened confidence in applying the Mudawwanah on European soil. While this can impede the validation of European (extra-)judicial divorces in Muslim-majority countries and lead to divergent implementations of the same norms in Italy and Morocco, the dynamics nonetheless foster forum shopping and women’s empowerment. Paying careful attention to the "gendered readings" of legal provisions introduced by disputing partners before the judiciary, the narrative depicting victimized Muslim women in migratory contexts is therefore challenged.