Introduction

Family law practices and trends are constantly changing; they are constantly being impacted by changing expectations within society. It seems that in the area of family law and emerging trends, Slovakia as a European country lags behind other European countries in certain aspects. For example, issues of surrogate motherhood, modern families, trusts and prenuptial agreements are untouched under Slovakian law. Currently, a reform of procedural law and the judiciary system have taken place in Slovakia. The substantive law reform is still pending and shall include at least prenuptial agreements.

There were several legislative proposals to establish at least registered partnerships in Slovakian family law, however none has been successful so far. The topic of same-sex marriages is currently under determination in the Slovak Constitutional Court in a case connected to residence permits for married same-sex couples.

An advantage of the Slovakian family law system is the given emphasis on reaching parental agreements, where the system leads and gives parents a hand in the attempt to reach an amicable solution for their family situation. After filing a court application, it is general practice that the parents will be called for an informative meeting at the court, with only one goal: to discuss the current situation and, together with professional help, find agreement. That is done very quickly, within a few weeks after the application is filed. While waiting for the court date, parties will also be given the opportunity to have state psychological support on their way to reaching agreement (free of charge).

Another benefit of the Slovakian court system is that all costs of the family court case are borne by state, even the translation costs. There are no court fees, and there is no duty to pay trial costs of the opposite party in cases where minor children are involved. Only expert witnesses need to be paid by the parties.

Slovakia is also one of the leading European countries in digitalisation of the court system. Court documents are delivered only in an electronic manner to electronic mailboxes, the court files exist in electronic forms (parties can log into a court file any time and from anywhere and they receive a notification when something new is added to the court file). However, there are no remote court hearings in Slovakia. It is possible to have one parent remotely attending a hearing, but all others shall be present personally.

Reform of the Court System

In 2023, a judicial reform was concluded, establishing a specialised family court in the capital city Bratislava. It is the only court specialising in family law matters for Bratislava District. Additionally, the number of appeal courts for family law matters was lowered and there are now only three appeal courts in Slovakia for family law matters (Trnava, Žilina and Prešov). Bratislava as capital city has only specialised city courts, whereas the courts in all other areas of Slovakia are general courts dealing with all the different areas of law, such as criminal matters, civil, commercial, family, etc.

Child’s Voice and Recent Practice

Participation of children in family law cases in Slovakia is very important. The current trend is to enable each child to be informed about the proceedings,the result of which will affect their life, and to express their feelings and opinion about the situation, appropriate to their age. Even small children aged three or four are given the opportunity to talk; however, the discussion is led in a more playful way and drawings are included.

Every child is represented by a social worker, who usually speaks to the child in their home as natural environment, without the presence of either parent. Children will be given a choice as to whether they want both parents to be informed about their talk or want to keep it confidential. The child’s opinion is considered by the judge alongside all other arguments, evidence and circumstances provided during the case.

Where necessary, for example, for determining a child’s conflict of loyalty to one parent, an expert witness from child psychology might be called to the case.

The child can also be heard directly by the judge in the presence of the social worker. Courts try to make the environment as friendly as possible for the child. Some courts have so-called children’s rooms containing toys and books, set out especially for smaller children to feel relaxed. The judge is without robe, dressed as a regular person. The best interests of the child is the leading principle in family law cases.

Custody Trends

The days of the mother always getting custody simply because she is the mother is no longer the norm. While it is often assumed the mother will automatically receive custody of the children, it is not legally guaranteed in a divorce. Shared custody may be achieved by a parental agreement or may be awarded by a judge.

The custody model in Slovakia refers to physical custody of the child. Both parents can make decisions on behalf of the child even in the sole custody model of one parent. That right is not taken away from any of the parents.

Based on recent judicial evolvement in Slovakia, the trend of rising numbers of shared custody by both parents is emerging, mostly in cases where parents split and the children are used to having both their parents in their lives on a daily basis. Based on the Slovakian Family Law Act, shared custody must be considered in all cases where both parents are capable of taking care of their children and even one parent shows an interest in shared custody.

Recently, a new custody model was introduced in the Slovakian Family Law Act; it is joint custody. It differs from the shared custody in several ways. Firstly, the shared custody model must be very specific, stating exact times and days when the child is in the custody of which parent. However, the joint custody model is more flexible, not stating explicitly any dates and times. For example, for teen children it gives them flexibility to be with both parents even during one day (after school they go to the father’s house and then sleep over with the mother, etc). It must be mentioned that the joint custody model is only possible by agreement; the judge cannot rule about joint custody.

No-Fault Divorce

Divorce in Slovakia is a no-fault divorce, which means the showing of wrongdoing is not required. A family court is permitted to grant a divorce in response to a petition by either party to the marriage without requiring the petitioner to provide evidence that the defendant has committed a breach of the marital contract.

The Slovakian perspective of marriage is with an emphasis on the voluntariness of the union. Once one of the spouses decides they do not want to stay in that union, the state and the court will not force them to do so.

However, the related issue of parental rights and duties to minor children is the obligatory emphasis in divorce proceedings involving children.

Divorce in Slovakia can be granted only by the judge after a court hearing. No agreements about the divorce are allowed. Parental agreements about minor children are allowed and supported. The judge needs to approve the parental agreement in order for it to become legally enforceable.

Multidisciplinary Approach to Family Law and Collaboration

A significant emphasis is given to providing parents with help and understanding about the importance of reaching parental agreement about their children. The interdisciplinary perspective helps parents consider the many influences on their child development from different professionals, thereby resulting in more pragmatic and helpful solutions to contemporary family legal issues.

Collaboration is about working co-operatively and jointly towards a shared goal, combining skills and efforts in a common interest. In the case of the family law system, it specifically focuses on a professional duty of care towards the best interests of children.

Social workers, psychologists, co-ordinators for family matters and finally the judge are all involved to guide the parents through the separation or divorce procedure, with an emphasis on being able to communicate effectively after divorce, agree on matters related to their children and deal with emotions arising during the separation process.

Work starts right after filing the divorce or separation application to the court. The court organises, in a very short time, a meeting guided by a co-ordinator for family matters at the court. The purpose is to talk to parents about their parental responsibility for the well-being of their children and to help them see, even during those difficult times, what is in the best interests of their children.

After such a meeting, the psychologist recommends they continue the path to reaching parental agreement and learning new ways to communicate with each other as separated parents. The social worker is available to parents on demand and in cases where the situation so requires.

Finally, before opening the court hearing, the judge is involved in the process by encouraging parents to find solutions and agreements together.

The children might be involved in the process any time it is necessary or needed. Involvement of minor children is carried out by means of talks with the social worker, who meets the child without the parents being present.

Trends in Child Abduction Cases

The question of recognising the habitual residency of the child is becoming more complex and difficult, especially in cases where the child is entrusted to the shared custody of two parents living in two different states. These cases have become more frequent, for example between Slovakia and Czech Republic or Slovakia and Austria. In such case, the younger child attends two kindergartens or preschools, has two paediatricians, has friends in both countries and has spent the same amount of time in both countries.

Child Maintenance in Slovakia

Currently, Slovakian courts calculate child maintenance based on the individual facts of each case, determining the following:

• income of the parents;
• the justified needs of the child;
• the financial capacity of the parents and their financial potential; and
• other maintenance duties, etc.

An advisory chart with more specific maintenance rules was recently introduced by the Ministry of Justice. The chart provides for exact percentages of net income due from the obliged parent based on the age of the child and differing according to the number of children of the obliged parent.

Digitalisation

Slovakia is one of the leading countries in digitalisation of the court system. As mentioned in the introduction, communication with the court and other authorities is in an electronic manner using electronic signatures. For that purpose, electronic mailboxes are used. That system is already common in many EU countries. The biggest advantage for the attorney is that last day filings can be done until midnight – not until the last post office closes in the city, as used to be the situation.

Online payment of court fees is also available in Slovakia

Slovakia is already providing digital electronic court files. Each party has direct access to the electronic court file system, which contains all documents in the court file. A document is uploaded to the electronic court file right after filing via the electronic mailbox system.

Notification about a new document in the file is sent via email to all parties. This system allows attorneys to be fully updated about all filing during the procedure and to study a court file any time and from anywhere. There is no need to visit a court personally to see a paper version of the court file; just a few clicks, and the attorney sees almost everything that is in the file. The system is not an internal system of an attorney office, but an official system managed by the Ministry of Justice of the Slovak Republic.

Court hearings are still operated on site and by personal attendance of attorneys and parties. There is no option for remote court hearings. A foreigner living abroad has the option to attend the court hearing remotely; however, there is no specific electronic equipment in the court rooms to manage that. Usually, in practice, an attorney brings their own laptop and puts the client online. A secure link is provided by the Slovak Ministry of Justice for the online connection.

Conclusion

Slovakian family law is changing over time. Current trends and developments are influenced by society and by other European countries but there is still a conservative approach to modern topics in family law.