The Italian supreme court on Thursday struck down the decision of a
lower court which upheld a Church-sanctioned annulment of a 20-year
marriage on the grounds that it produced no children.
The Court of Cassation decided 'not having children' to be an
insufficient reason to annul the marriage of the couple, who are from
Italy's northern Veneto region.
Even civil divorce is governed by stringent laws that require a
couple remain 'legally separated' for three years before the divorce can
be finalised.
In this case, the husband did obtain an annulment from the Catholic
authority known as the 'Sacra Rota' in 2001 and went on to obtain State
recognition of the decision in 2007.
SIC: AIE/INT'L