Individuals of different cultures, religions and ethnicities have varied life cycle and betrothal rituals. Many are rooted in thousands of years of tradition. The vast majority of Americans include religious vows during their wedding ceremonies, but when the marriage ends, the divorce proceedings are secular and resolved through the civil court system. By contrast, for a small minority of individuals of deep faith, there are commandments to obtain a decree from the church, mosque or synagogue. In my law practice, I have handled religious divorce matters for Orthodox Jews, Muslims, Christians, Catholics, Jehovah's Witness, Hindus and Bahá'ís.

Religious divorce is a particularly complex area of family law because it is a fusion of legal rules, civil procedure, religious practices, and societal norms. Divorce matters have an emotional intensity that few other legal practice areas have. Religious agreements bestow considerable leverage and unilateral control to one side, which can create a very uneven and sometimes unfair negotiation. When you combine stigma, family honor, and an adversarial legal forum, otherwise simple divorce matters can become very challenging to handle. Comity of foreign orders, and international jurisdiction disputes are also complicating factors.

It is vitally important to understand where clients are coming from and to respect the cultural and religious context of their lives and their disputes. Not only must lawyers and judges be well versed on the intricacies of religious law and marriages, they must fully understand the role of (and limits of) religious arbitration tribunals.