Interpretation of Negative Prerequisites for Dissolving Marriage by Divorce – Comments in the Light of Directives of the Supreme Court

The issues discussed in the following article focus on the interpretation of negative prerequisites for dissolving marriage by divorce. In Poland, special protection of the family stems both from the Constitution and the Family and Guardianship Code of 1964. The obstacles which seem to counteract the independent breaking of the marriage knot are the regulated positive and negative divorce prerequisites. In the area of divorce prerequisites in question, the Family and Guardianship Code functions in the unchanged form. As provided by the Family and Guardianship Code one of the negative divorce prerequisites was the welfare of minor children who could suffer as a result of granting a divorce. It is interesting for the contemporary judicial practice and the interpretation of law made in court judgments whether and in what scope it is possible to use the contemporary achievements of the Supreme Court as regards the guidelines. It seems that in the situation where the directives lost their binding force, it is not purposeful to refer to them as a source of law interpretation. The practice of judicial decisions seems to oppose this idea. Moreover, the guidelines of the Supreme Court passed at the time when they were a commonly binding interpretation of the law will undoubtedly be useful for creating the judicial law now and in the future.