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Karolina Dehnhard, Esq., international family Law Attorney, Founder of the Divorce Dynasty platform, and Partner with Lindabury McCormick Estabrook & Cooper, addresses this issue. Born in Poland and fluent in Polish, Karolina represents clients who oen split their time between the USA and Poland and neighboring countries such as Germany and, as such, can establish jurisdiction, or the right to file for divorce, in a given country. Which is better with this strategic option available? While the answer, as any lawyer would say, "depends on the situation, as each case is different," Karolina, together with her colleagues in Poland (and Germany), focuses on giving her clients a clear road map of their options with a focus on what ultimately will be the best solution when it comes to all aspects of divorce. e word "ALL" is at the crux of the analysis, as divorces in Poland are bifurcated, meaning the Courts deal with issues of support, custody, parenting time, and fault and then deal with equitable distribution issues in a separate proceeding. Given that Courts in the USA deal with all the problems in a divorce proceeding, this differentiation becomes the start of any international divorce consultation. inking logically, filing for divorce in Poland, when there are assets in the USA to divide, would seem counter-intuitive, as that part of the dissolution of the marriage would appear to be protracted. e other issue for consideration is that the general rule in Poland is that marital assets are divided on a 50/50 basis, whereas New Jersey's equitable distribution law provides for an uneven or "equitable" division based on factors specific to each case. With the above backdrop in mind, an example is the best way to make a point. Let's focus on a couple that has children and assets. Let's assume that the mother and the children live in Poland 10 months out of the year, as the children attend a private school (in English), following the couple's decision to reside in their second home, located in Poland, because Husband/Father works for a US-based office of a company whose headquarters is in Poland. Let's further assume that the income to support the family is paid out in the USA and used to maintain marital property both in the USA and Poland. e parties also own an income-producing property in the USA and are minority shareholders in a company in New Jersey. e wife finds out her husband, while living alone in the USA, is having an affair. Deciding to end the marriage, she seeks advice, stating that her goal is to have custody of the children and to set support commensurate with the lifestyle based on her Husband's income earned in the USA and to have exclusive use and occupancy of the home in Poland, while the parties address issues of ultimate equitable distribution aer that. In this scenario, filing in Poland by Wife may be the best option. Given the Wife's residency in Poland for more than six months before filing, the family court would have jurisdiction over the children. It would be able to set custody, parenting time, and support. e husband would need to retain an attorney in Poland to represent his 96 VUENJ.COM

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