Matrimonial Cases Research Articles

A kötelékvédő szerepének változásai az egyházjogban, kitekintéssel a magyar világi perjogra

The defender of the bond is one of the most important officials at the ecclesiastical courts. In this paper I examine the changes of this office both in canonical legislation and in jurisdictional practise (and in Hungarian private law). I present the practise of the holy see of Veszprém and Székesfehérvár in matrimonial cases in the 19th and 20th century.

Role Of Family Court To Reduce Matrimonial Cases In India

Role Of Family Court To Reduce Matrimonial Cases In India

The Listeners: A History of Wiretapping in the United States by Brian Hochman

Reviewed by: The Listeners: A History of Wiretapping in the United States by Brian Hochman P. Arun (bio) The Listeners: A History of Wiretapping in the United States By Brian Hochman. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2022. Pp. 368. Brian Hochman's The Listeners is an account of more than 150 years of wiretapping and eavesdropping over telegraph and telephone communications in America. In this chronological account, Hochman explores "how the wiretap has evolved from a specialized intelligence-gathering tool to a mundane fact of American life" (p. 6). To do this, he meticulously unpacks the technological evolution, discusses the uses and abuses of technologies by the government and other organizations, and reexamines surveillance scandals as well as debates on surveillance and privacy over the course of time. In addition to secondary literature, the author examines historical newspapers and magazines, lawsuits, congressional hearings, investigative reports, personal interviews, pulp novels, films, and drama series. The issue of surveillance is not unique to the digital age, as such practices were also prevalent in the analog age; as Hochman says, "surveillance is, and always has been, a constitutive element of our communications ecosystem" (p. 6). Previous historical studies of wiretapping by David Kahn, James Bamford, and Athan Theoharis revolved around code-breaking, spycraft, and crushing political dissent carried out by government agencies. Following the narrative of secrecy and governmentality, these canonical texts exposed the existence of a covert discourse on wiretapping, which was "buried in the depths of the state" (p. 12). On the other hand, scholarship by Walter F. Murphy, Edith J. Lapidus, Whitfield Diffie, and Susan Landau, among others, focused on the official realm of law and policy. To present an alternative story, Hochman looks into the overt discourse on wiretapping by exploring how it was employed, debated, imagined, and experienced. He examines the intense pro-and-con debate over wiretapping policy for official use by the state, which remained unsettled until the mid-twentieth century. Besides the predominant narrative of using surveillance against communists and radicals, Hochman identifies how American lawmakers in the twentieth century presented wiretapping as a weapon to fight alcohol, crime, and drugs. Then he investigates unofficial uses for various purposes, such as private detectives hired in matrimonial cases, labor spies, and corporate espionage to gather competitive intelligence. He also traces how citizens and businesses used wiretaps and bugs. Besides the fear surrounding Big Brother in the past, there were "Big Brother's little siblings," who were "the 'listeners' the nation feared for much of the wiretap's history" (p. 9). Although Hochman explores the period of telegraph surveillance, he overlooks some crucial debates: legislative investigation committees and grand juries obtaining telegrams in an indiscriminate manner and the reactions of the public and newspapers to these practices; the eminent jurist [End Page 229] Thomas Cooley's opinion on the inviolability of telegrams, which shaped the views of many of his contemporaries, including the prominent lawyer and attorney for Western Union, Henry Hitchcock (merely cited in ch. 3 n3); and a failed but firm attempt to seek Fourth Amendment protection for the telegram in the Ex parte Brown case, where a Western Union telegraph manager was held in custody for contempt of a subpoena. The absence of these debates leads to the inaccurate view that telegraph surveillance existed and thrived without any resistance in the name of privacy. Except for partial references (in chs. 2 and 3), this book obscures wartime surveillance measures employed by the United States and the allied countries during both world wars and the popular reaction among citizens and businesses. The word "wiretap" during the telegraph era is not just a phenomenon of intercepting and monitoring messages; it carries a few other connotations such as censoring, delaying, and blocking messages. A book on the history of wiretapping in the United States definitely deserves a separate chapter on these historical developments and nuances, focusing on how citizens and businesses expressed their outrage and despair toward wartime surveillance measures. In spite of missing some of these themes, Hochman has skilfully contributed to understanding the phenomenon of wiretapping as a dirty business during the mid-nineteenth and twentieth centuries and the ways it evolved and flourished as...

“Under the Whip” or Marital Violence, Cruelty and Drunkenness: Defining the Boundaries of Judicially Intolerable Marital Behaviour in the Cape Supreme Court, 1890–1900

“Under the Whip” or Marital Violence, Cruelty and Drunkenness: Defining the Boundaries of Judicially Intolerable Marital Behaviour in the Cape Supreme Court, 1890–1900

Whose law is it anyway? The case of matrimonial property in Israel

Abstract It is often argued that courts avoid foreign laws because they prefer local law. It would make sense if they did—after all, foreign law can be hard to understand and complicated to employ, and it is also . . . foreign. Aiming to investigate this assumption through a qualitative analysis of all available cases on one question and comparing the findings with the approach towards local matrimonial property cases in Israel, this Article finds something rather different. At least as regards Israeli judges discussing matrimonial property, it appears that sometimes judges do not prefer the lex fori but something else. The Article discusses one case that reveals what could be described as a judicial mutiny, where judges chose to apply neither foreign law nor local law per se. In the case of matrimonial property, a particular legal norm seems particularly close to the judges’ hearts. So much so that despite legislative intervention designed to change the judicially-shaped law, the courts continue to apply their own, judicially created law.

Marriage in the Philippines After the Council of Trent (Seventeenth to Eighteenth Centuries)

The evangelisation of the Philippines took place after the Council of Trent; hence, from the beginning matrimony was governed by its canons and decrees. Until the provincial councils held in the 1770s, the Philippine Church followed the directives of the Third Mexican Provincial Council. Manuals for the administration of sacraments and for parish priests by authors based in the Philippines and published were primary references for the canonical form of marriage. Serving as a window into how Church authorities dealt with local situations and customs towards enforcement of Tridentine doctrine and law are the edicts, pastoral letters, and on occasion of diocesan visits, ordinances issued by bishops. On the micro-level, the dispensations granted for a variety of impediments and the matrimonial cases processed in the ecclesiastical court of Manila show the nuances of law and justice, taking into account pastoral considerations, personal circumstances, and local customs. They also demonstrate the understanding of litigants of the attributes of canonical marriage as well as the level of assimilation of the same. Missionary literature from the first century of evangelisation mentions common difficulties encountered in introducing Christian marriage vis-à-vis indigenous institution: the doctrine of the unity and indissolubility of marriage, the primordial requirement of consent, and the matter of impediments. The cases discussed by moral theologians indicate the prevalence of those issues well into the eighteenth century, especially in missionary districts and rural areas. Recommended citation: Camacho, Marya Svetlana T., Marriage in the Philippines After the Council of Trent (Seventeenth to Eighteenth Centuries), in: Rechtsgeschichte - Legal History Rg 27 (2019) 153-162, online: http://dx.doi.org/10.12946/rg27/153-162

Indigenization of Restitution of Conjugal Rights in Pakistan: A Plea for its Abolition

The paper is a socio-legal analysis of the remedy of restitution of conjugal rights (RCR) with reference to Pakistan. It analyzes the way an alien remedy of the RCR - a legal transplant by the colonial government of British India- has been indigenized in the country. The RCR has progressively extended its sphere of influence multifariously. In addition to its implications for determination of rights and responsibilities of spouses in matrimonial cases such as dower, maintenance and nature of dissolution, the RCR is employed in sexual offences for avoiding or delaying judicial trial - metamorphosing the affirmative remedy of the RCR into a defense plea. The RCR is a domesticated version of a suit for specific performance, but it has not retained that essence and complexion over the years due to its receptiveness to pervasive misuse. It is a readymade legal instrument in the hands of unscrupulous husbands to be employed as sword and shield against the rights of their wives. There are signs of this realization in legislative instruments and judicial pronouncements, but without abolishing the RCR it is difficult to curb its exploitation.

Obrońca węzła małżeńskiego w świeckim prawie małżeńskim w Królestwie Polskim w XIX w.

It was not until 1741, during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XIV, that the office of defender of the bond ( defensor vinculi or defensor matrimonium ) appeared in church matrimonial law. Next it was applied both to the matrimonial secular codifications in some European countries, as well as to partitioning legislation in our country. Until 1825, during the times of the Duchy of Warsaw and the Kingdom of Poland, in matrimonial cases there was applied the French legislation (the Napoleonic Code) which was of a highly secular character, and did not provide for the office of defender of the bond. Polish conservative factions, mainly the clergy of the Catholic Church, did not like such a state of affairs. There were postulated changes to matrimonial law regulations towards the confessional character, as well as implementation of the office of defender of the bond – following the ABGB pattern of 1811 in the Habsburg Monarchy – taking into account the domestic demands. The first attempts at reforms in this regard (1817–1818) ended in failure. Subsequent changes in marriage law, in the Kingdom of Poland, were implemented in 1825 under the name of the Civil Code of the Polish Kingdom. The Code would have allowed a defender of the bond to appear before a court in such cases as divorce, termination of marriage, or legal separation (“divorce from bed-and-board”). Such a state of affairs was still not appreciated by the Catholic clergy who ultimately led to the adoption of a new marriage law in 1836. New law was of a highly confessional character and referred to jurisdictions and laws of individual religious organizations. These provisions, as amended, were in force in Poland (in the former Kingdom of Poland) until 31 December 1945.

Prawnokarne aspekty bigamii w Polsce w okresie dwudziestolecia międzywojennego

The interwar period was marked by the lack of uniform laws regulating the institution of marriage. Particular districts had different legal regulations as a legacy of the former legislation binding in the partitioned Poland. Depending on a professed faith or a place of residence, the legislator imposed on inhabitants of a particular district specific provisions pertaining both to entering into and dissolution of marriage. However, it should be noted that in central and eastern Poland entrusting civil jurisdiction in matrimonial cases to ecclesiastical courts contributed to the phenomenon of bigamy spreading in the interwar period, which became an enormous challenge to the legislative and primarily to the judiciary.

Mitis Iudex Dominus Iesus – nadzieje i obawy sądownictwa kościelnego w sprawach o nieważność małżeństwa

The article reflects upon the question of modifications in canonical matrimonial processes caused by pope Francis’ motu proprio Mitis Iudex Dominus Iesus. Some of the issues brought up by the author are: changes of tribunals’ competences in matrimonial cases, collegiality of the tribunal, the sufficiency and enforceability of the sentence after the affirmative decision of the first instance and both the positive and negative effects of designing a briefer form of trying nullity cases called processus matrimonialis brevior coram Episcopo.

The problem of “legal bigamy” in the light of the rulings of the District Court in Poznan

The purpose of the paper is to present the problem of so-called “legal bigamy” in the light of the rulings of the District Court in Poznan. The marriage law regulations in The Second Polish Republic were completely different in various parts of the country and attempts to unify them failed. This situation caused significant problems: for example, many civil courts refused to recognize some of the divorce judgments issued by church courts in the former Russian partition because of their improper jurisdiction. The paper focuses on two matrimonial cases that were ruled upon by the District Court in Poznan. In both cases the District Court in Poznan was to decide whether divorce judgments issued by the church court of the Polish Orthodox Church in Warsaw were also binding in the former Prussian district.

Essays in Honor of Sister Rose Mcdermott, S.S.J. (review)

Reviewed by: Essays in Honor of Sister Rose Mcdermott, S.S.J. Paul L. Golden C.M. Essays in Honor of Sister Rose Mcdermott, S.S.J. edited by Robert J. Kaslyn, S.J. Institutiones Iuris Ecclesiae I. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America, 2010. This festschrift, compiled by fellow professors of The Catholic University and other colleagues, honors Sister Rose McDermott, S.S.J. on her 75th birthday. This is perhaps the highest honor that can be bestowed on an academic. When one reviews Sister Rose's curriculum vitae and the many laudatio letters, it is clear why this work was undertaken. The volume contains thirteen [End Page 287] original, scholarly and stimulating essays on a wide range of canonical topics. This reviewer will comment on most but not all of the contributions. Appropriate to the honoree, the majority of articles concern religious law. Kurt Martens outlines the history of a particular form of religious life: the Beguines in Flanders. This was a medieval lay movement significant because women created it for women. Sharon Holland identifies some contemporary questions regarding religious governance and explores their compatibility with the provisions of the Code of Canon Law. Of particular interest is whether the more consultative and collegial decision-making processes in religious institutes are in accord with our norms of law. There is an essay on the evolution of societies of apostolic life by Philip Brown. After distilling the three distinguishing characteristics of these societies, Brown examines the mission and governance structures of six representative societies. He ends the essay by summarizing the applicable canons in the code. Sean Sheridan reviews select provisions of the Code pertaining to the involvement of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life in Catholic elementary and high schools. This essay includes a useful survey of documents on Catholic education including the current Code of Canon Law. Because of Sister Rose's research in the area of lay ministry, Thomas Green offers a comparison of laity exercising ministry in church governance as found in the Latin and Eastern codes. After summarizing a theology of ministry, James Coriden addresses five practical issues concerning lay pastoral ministry in today's parish. Coriden argues for the preference of entrusting the care of a parish to a non-priest leader according to canon 517, §2 rather than entrusting several nearby parishes to one priest-pastor. Robert Kaslyn studies the development of the institute of incardination and analyzes the implications of incardination today: reverence with obedience and remuneration. John Foster examines the third movement of our Eucharistic liturgy: the communion rite. He traces the development of the meaning and discipline of this rite after Vatican II. Foster gives us a careful analysis of the pertinent texts and points out the contradictions found in different normative documents. There are two essays on the process for marriage nullity. John Beal offers the reader a practical guide for those who wish to lodge a complaint of nullity as well as for tribunals on how to process this remedy against a sentence. Roch Pagé examines the question of what is the truth that the Instruction [End Page 288] Dignitas connubii intended to be discovered in a marital nullity case. He argues that some matrimonial cases do not require the judicial contentious process and, if they did, it might be appropriate to use a process adapted from the oral contentious process similar to the "summary contentious process" found in the Eastern code. This volume is full of gems. The quality of research and presentation is of the highest caliber. Because it is a festschrift and the first in new series of publications by the Canon Law Faculty of The Catholic University of America, it would be a shame if this work were overlooked. Teachers, practitioners and students of canon law will find much interesting and useful information between these covers. Besides, there is a wonderful frontispiece photo of Sister. Rose with her gentle smile and twinkling eyes! Paul L. Golden C.M. Vincentian Canonical Services Denver, CO Copyright © 2012 The Catholic University of America Press

A coisa julgada no processo civil canônico: entre a segurança e a certeza

O presente estudo trata da evolução histórica do instituto da coisa julgada no âmbito do processo canônico. O estudo histórico tem o objetivo de investigar a configuração do instituto ao longo da história e demonstrar que o seu desenvolvimento deu-se entre duas exigências opostas: a segurança e a certeza. Essas duas exigências têm especial relevância também no direito canônico vigente, particularmente no tocante à exigência da dupla conformidade e seu significado nas causas matrimoniais.

The Tribunal Handbook: Procedures for Formal Matrimonial Cases ed. by Lawrence G. Price, Daniel A. Smilanic, Victoria Vondenberger, RSM

book reviews 613 THE TRIBUNAL HANDBOOK: PROCEDURES FOR FORMAL MATRIMONIAL CASES edited by Lawrence G. Price, Daniel A. Smilanic &VictoriaVondenberger, RSM.Alexandria,VA: Canon Law Society of America, 2005. What is a handbook? Britannica informs a handbook is a ready reference ; a concise guide. The Tribunal Handbook: Procedures for Formal Matrimonial Cases readily accomplishes this purpose and more. With its glossary, cross references, index, footnotes, sample letters/decrees, etc., the text is a must for anyone whose ministry includes the possibility of assisting someone in presenting a formal matrimonial case. Likewise, the handbook should also be required for students studying for a degree in most Church related fields. The editors might even consider publishing some chapters, e.g., chapter one, “Initial inquiries;” or chapter four, “Starting a formal case,” as articles in popular religious and secular journals . The text will provide a number of eye-openers to many members of the Church as well as non members. The importance of the respondent’s rights is woven fittingly throughout the book, a reality that unfortunately does not gain enough attention and respect. From the respondent’s right to propose proofs (p. 53) through the particular mention of the respondent’s reviewing information (p. 85), to the respondent’s filing a complaint (p. 135), the text performs a great service pointing out that justice is for all. Chapter nine, “Resolution without a sentence,” puts to rest the assertion that all petitions are resolved (p. 157); the chapter reinforces the methodology of law qua law. The text references the Eastern code (CCEO), highlighting the richness of the Eastern churches’ law [pp. 6, 116, 135, passim]. Sadly, many Latin Catholics have a limited sense of the whole Church. The cited texts will introduce many to an awareness of the Eastern churches’history, organization , etc. A more global sense of Church is also offered by the text’s attending to the development of tribunal operations. Giving a scriptural background [p. 110] or incorporating Pius XII’s 1944 allocutions, let alone the 1936 instruction, Provida Mater, [p. xi]. speaks volumes of a constantly examined and evaluated process. Improvement is something all tribunals seek, particularly since tribunal workers, Church leaders and those whom we serve, need to enlarge our understanding of marriage procedures [p. 159]. An example: the need to inspect the adequacy of marital preparation [p. 162]—an understatement, if ever there was one. The USCCB “Marriage Initiative” addresses this very question. This reviewer would have liked a paragraph included [p. 154] acknowledging that those with graduate degrees [e.g., STL, STM] in other than canon law disciplines; or in arts/sciences [e.g., psychology, criminology ] are authorized tribunal members. Referring to such simply as non-degreed in canon law is misleading and limiting; especially if they are duly appointed, experienced practitioners, and members of the CLSA.A paragraph or at least an expansion of the inclusion of indults (p. 145) could affirm these ecclesial ministers and help recruit others. In conclusion, this addition to the CLSA handbook series is, by far, a “must have and use” volume for all serving in tribunals. Michael A. Boccaccio Pastor, St. Philip Church, Norwalk, CT Diocese of Bridgeport, CT AMMISSIONE ALLE NOZZE E PREVENZIONE DELLA NULLITÀ DEL MATRIMONIO edited by Miguel A. Ortiz. Milano: Giuffrè, 2005. Pp. xiii–371. There are probably few practicing tribunal canonists in the Church today who would not appreciate opportunities to assist even indirectly in the pastoral and canonical preparation of couples planning marriage, i.e., to have pastors and engaged couples pay attention to the jurisprudence that canonists and their predecessors have developed over the years in repeatedly reflecting on and applying the Church’s canonical understanding of marriage to marriage nullity cases. The difficulty, of course, is that tribunal canonists and canon law teachers specializing in matrimonial jurisprudence are not usually called upon to provide canonical insight into what should constitute tomorrow’s successful marriages but rather to decide whether, in law and in fact, yesterday’s putative marriages were proven invalid. Moreover, it would seem, at least at first glance, that there is, at best, tenuous grounding for such jurisprudential insights to serve as a positive support for marriage preparation; for...

A Law Guardian by Any Other Name: A Critique of the Report of the Matrimonial Commission

In this article, I critique an important report, the Report of the Matrimonial Commission to the Chief Judge of the State of New York issued in 2006 by a blue-ribbon commission calling for widespread changes in the way matrimonial cases should be handled in new York courts. Among the topics covered by the Report is the call for an increased use of lawyers for children in these proceedings. I take strong issue with this recommendation. One of the principal recommendations in the Report is that children's lawyers should, to an ever greater degree, be called upon to advocate for the outcome desired by their clients. As between assigning children's lawyers who would advocate for what the lawyers perceive to be the client's best interests and who would advocate for what the child wants, I agree that it is far preferable to ask children's lawyers to advocate for what the client wants. But I go further and demonstrate, through a careful analysis of New York caselaw, that judges and courts do not want children's lawyers to advocate for what children want and expect, sometimes even require, that the children's lawyer provide the court with the lawyer's recommendation on how to decide the case. My main thesis in this article is that, although many commentators increasingly want children's lawyers to advocate for what the clients want, that is not what children's lawyers tend to do in large part because courts do not want them to. Thus, there is a sharp disconnect between the literature and theory of what children's lawyers should do and what children's lawyers are expected to do by the judges who appoint them which, in turn, affects what the children's lawyers actually do.

Les sentences de l ’official à Saragosse et à Barcelone à la fin du Moyen Âge

The Sentences of the Officiality in Saragossa and Barcelona (end of the Middle-Ages). The way matrimonial cases were tried varies from one officiality to the other between Saragossa and Barcelona. Nevertheless, the minutes of the sentences are built in a similar way, regardless of the nature of the conclusion that was reached. However, differences can be noticed as to their drafting and length, indicating structural and legal alterations in the trials. In the case of the ecclesiastical judge of Saragossa, the noted evolution is characterized by the disappearance of the Gospels from the table of the judge and that of the term « equity ». Therefore, the guarantee of a valid and undeniable sentence is no longer present. At the time of the withdrawal, one notices the presence of law experts (periti) who were consulted by the judge before he took his decision. The meaning and the legal impact of this change within the ecclesiastical jurisdictions metioned above need to be studied and understood - it is the aim of the present paper to do so.

The Foundations of Medieval English Ecclesiastical History: Studies Presented to David Smith (review)

The Foundations of Medieval English Ecclesiastical History: Studies Presented to David Smith. Edited by Philippa Hoskin, Christopher Brooke, and Barrie Dobson. [Studies in the History of Medieval Religion, vol. 27.] (Rochester, New York: Boydell Press. 2005. Pp. xii, 235. $90.00.) The economics of the publishing world make the publication of Festschriften much rarer than used to be the case; however, this volume shows a great combination of personal tribute to an eminent scholar and a pioneering archivist, on the occasion of his retirement from the directorship of the Borthwick Institute, University of York. It is a focused and interesting collection of essays, the subjects of which reflect the breath and scope of David Smith's work. The first two contributions in the book, by Christopher Brooke and Christopher Webb respectively, present the scholarly work of David Smith as the editor of the British Academy's English Episcopal Acta series, general editor of the Lincoln Record Society, and editor of many volumes of other medieval ecclesiastical documents from the York diocese as well as director of the Borthwick Institute, which under his leadership became one of the most important repositories of documents related to the ecclesiastical and regional history of northern Britain as well as an active research center and training ground for new generations of archivists. Julia Barrow's contribution, Why Forge Episcopal Acta? Preliminary Observations on the Forged Charters in the English Episcopal Acta series argues that forgeries were produced primarily by large Benedictine monasteries and cathedral priories and to a lesser degree by other ecclesiastical institutions in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The most active in this field were post-Conquest foundations at Gloucester, Rochester, Durham, and Norwich, and the charters were produced to assert the right to numerous parish churches or tithes granted in the late eleventh century, which was a low point in the production of private charters as well as an attempt to secure freedom from various demands of episcopal officials.This article contains also a useful list of forged episcopal acta and beneficiaries of these documents. The next essay, by Nicholas Bennett, Pastors and Masters: The Beneficed Clergy of North-East Lincolnshire, 1290-1340, argues for a less gloomy picture of lower clergy in later medieval Britain, which has traditionally been seen as dominated by absenteeism and lack of care for parish duties. Using the example from the registers of the bishops of the dioceses of Lincoln, he finds many examples contradicting this view. Then, Janet Burton elucidates how another type of sources-so called cause papers-concerning payments of ecclesiastical dues, matrimonial cases, defamation, and testamentary wills can be used to explore complex relationships between religious houses in Yorkshire and their lay neighbors. …

Breaking the Deadlock

BY 1945 the English political and legal establishments were agreed that radical reform of the funding of civil litigation and an extension of criminal legal aid introduced by the Poor Persons Defence Act 1930 were urgently required. Lord Rushcliffe's Committee, appointed in 1944 in the light of the extraordinary pressure on the provision of legal services during the Second World War, particularly in matrimonial cases, had made a series of recommendations which the great reforming post-War Labour Government accepted in principle. These recommendations were designed to improve access to justice very substantially. The resulting legislation, the Legal Aid Act 1949, was to have very far-reaching effects on the development, growth and financing of the English legal profession and the way in which English lawyers conducted contentious business in the courts, before statutory tribunals and in private arbitration. The Attlee Government's aim to bring legal aid to the disadvantaged was set...

Equality, Needs, and Bad Behaviour: The ‘Other’ Decision-Making Approaches in Australian Matrimonial Property Cases

Australia`s matrimonial property division jurisprudence has tended to focus on cases involving large asset pools and successful business enterprises. This contribution draws on an empirical study of unreported Family Court judgments to explore the patterns of reasoning in the more general population of defended matrimonial property disputes. The data from this study revealed that case law principles which exhort judges to assess and compare the value of each spouse`s contributions were rarely observed in practice beyond the `big money` cases, and that judges regularly abandoned the requirement to consider the parties` contributions in favour of a needs-based approach where there were limited assets and dependent children to house. The findings also indicate that notions of matrimonial fault continue to affect judicial decision-making in this area of law.

La conformidad de decisiones en el Código de 1983

Canon 1641 gathers together the various ways in which the formal effect of an adjudged matter can come about. This effect has priority and the material effect of the res iudicata totally depends on it. Therefore, the impossibility of right of appeal carries with it as a consequence the right of that which has been decided be put into effect since it has become an adjudged matter. In the canonical process the adjudged matter is a juridical institution directly based in the search for the truth, the most important reason for the process itself. This certainty is lawfully obtained by virtue of the two conforming judgements when this double conformity refers to the same action, constituted by the effective coincidence of the elements of the action. Moreover, the said action has to be fully identified in the lawsuit, and above all, in the legal summing up which determines the content of the sentence. With respect to the adjudged matter in cases concerning the status of persons, in spite of the exception established in Can. 1643, in fact in all instances when two conforming judgements have been made in this type of case the formal efrect and the material effect of the adjudged matter have been made operative anyway. When the said double conformity does not exist the presentation of a new proposition of the case not linked to new and serious arguments is possible. Nevertheless, the preclusion of double conformity ought to be extended to all cases in which there has been at least one decision made in the case (fundamentally the assumptions of numbers 2° and 3° of Canon 1641), so that greater juridical security would be assured in this type of case which, nonetheless, could always be reopened with new argumments with the purpose of preventing whatever possible injustice may have arisen from the unsoundeness of a previous decision. With regard to double conformity in matrimonial cases, this procedural principle is very closely linked to three other principles of Natural Law;