Does my husband have a second wife?
DEAR MRS MACAULAY,
I am an American married to a Jamaican man for two years. At the time of our marriage I was aware of an ex-wife, and he produced divorce documents as proof. We got married in the United States while he was on a visiting visa, and he returned to Jamaica while I started the filing process. The problem is that his ‘ex-wife’ reached out to me, saying that they are still legally married and not divorced. She said no divorce proceedings took place, and that he probably provided me with fraudulent documents. How do I find out if he’s really divorced in Jamaica? Is there a registry? Could he have actually divorced her in Jamaica without her knowledge?
It is very unfortunate for you to find yourself in the position you are now. This must have been very painful and confusing. Let me answer all your questions with the hope that you shall then be able to resolve the doubts and fears which you now have about your status.
Marriages in Jamaica are governed by the Marriage Act. The licensed marriage officer who performs the ceremony must prepare and ensure the proper signing of the register by all persons required by law to do so, and hand over a copy to the wife, and as they are legally required to do, submit the copy from their books to the Registrar General’s Department (RGD) to be filed and registered. This is a legal duty for marriage officers, and their failure to do this is a chargeable offence.
The RGD is located in the parish of St Catherine at Twickenham Park. You can contact their customer service to make an online enquiry on https://www.rgd.gov. jm; e-mail: information@rgd.gov.jm, or try their telephone numbers at +1(876)7490550 or +1(876) 619-1260. Your request should be for an application for a certified copy of the marriage certificate, and give the names of both parties and the date the marriage occurred. You should have asked his “ex-wife” to give you these facts.
This will provide you with the official and correct certificate of their marriage , which you can use to check the contents of the document (decree absolute and decree nisi) that your husband had used. The RGD does not register divorces.
Your possession of the marriage certificate will assist you to pursue your search in the Supreme Court of Judicature of Jamaica. This is the only court which has the legal jurisdiction and power to grant decrees of divorce and decrees of nullity pursuant to the Matrimonial Causes Act. It has a repository of all the decrees granted and any consequential orders made in the course of matrimonial proceedings filed in its Registry. It is located at Public Building East, King Street, Kingston. With the use of the marriage certificate — if you have obtained it — and if not, with the full names and date the divorce was granted (or a bracket of time), and the claim number (which would be on the copy of the marriage certificate you obtained from the RGD), this will shorten the search time.
You can apply by mail which should be addressed to the Registrar of the court (family/divorce) at the address above stated, for a search to be done and for a certified copy of the decree absolute.
E-mail civil@jamaicajudiciary. gov.jm for the search and a certified copy. You would of course have to pay the court’s charges. The telephone numbers of the Supreme Court are +1 (876) 633-7201 or +1 (876)922 8300-8307. The Civil Registry’s direct line is +1(876) 613 8753.
These are to assist you to make the enquiries yourself. Or, you can retain the services of an attorney-at-law to do the necessaries for you.
I hope that I have clearly stated the position and that you can discover the true position of the marriage you celebrated and your actual legal position. I am sure that you are aware that if it turns out that the information from the “ex-wife” that she is still his legal wife is true, then he would have entered into a bigamous marriage with you and your marriage is a nullity. You would then have to apply to the Supreme Court here for it to pronounce a decree of nullity of your marriage. Your husband would also be liable to be charged for the offence of bigamy and for his fraudulent action in the use of forged/ fraudulent documents.
I do hope that this is not the position this man has put himself and you in, and that his ex was merely seeking to cause him trouble and break up your marriage. Have you talked to him about your plan to check on his status and whether the documents he used are real or false? I wish you the very best and a successful resolution of your very painful and difficult position.
Margarette May Macaulay is an attorney-at-law, Supreme Court mediator, notary public, and women’s and children’s rights advocate. Send questions via e-mail to allwoman@jamaicaobserver. com. Mrs Macaulay cannot provide personal responses.
