For couples who are in a second-time divorce in Vietnam, will the court handle the matter of child custody?

In reality, there are cases where, after the first divorce, the court has resolved the issue of child custody, and then the couple remarries and later divorces again for various reasons. Will the court handle the matter of shared child custody in the second divorce in Vietnam? This issue currently has different opinions.

For example, in the following case:

In 2013, the District People's Court X issued a judgment and decision granting the divorce of Mr. T and Ms. C. They were granted custody of their child, B, born in 2008, to Ms. C. Mr. T was not required to provide support for B because Ms. C did not request it.

In 2014, Mr. T and Ms. C resumed living together and registered their marriage according to legal regulations. During their cohabitation, they continued to have conflicts, so Mr. T filed for divorce and requested the court grant him the right to custody of B. Will the court handle Mr. T's request for child custody?

The first viewpoint argues that when Mr. T and Ms. C remarried, their marital relationship became legal. However, during their cohabitation after the divorce, they did not have any additional children together. Therefore, if Mr. T and Ms. C have a dispute over their divorce and Mr. T requests that the court grant him custody of B, the court will only handle the divorce between Mr. T and Ms. C. The request for shared child custody will not be addressed. This is because:

- The issue of child custody (B) between Mr. T and Ms. C has already been resolved by the court. Therefore, the court cannot handle the dispute over child custody between Mr. T and Ms. C for the second time.

- The divorce judgment between Mr. T and Ms. C issued by the District People's Court X is still legally effective (except for the decision on their divorce). The judgment has not been annulled or partially amended by any other judgment or decision. Therefore, Ms. C still has the right to continue to care for B, according to the court's judgment.

- If there is evidence that Ms. C is unable to meet the conditions for nurturing and caring for B, then Mr. T can only file a lawsuit requesting the court to change the custodian without having the right to request the court to handle the dispute over shared child custody.

The second viewpoint argues that according to the current legal regulations, when the court handles divorce disputes, it must resolve all related issues, including shared child custody, support, division of shared assets, etc. Therefore, when Mr. T and Ms. C remarried, they established a new marital relationship, so when they have a dispute over child custody in the divorce, the court must handle it and decide which spouse will have custody.

The court's decision to grant custody of B to Ms. C for nurturing does not have permanent validity. In 2014, when they remarried, they reestablished the marital relationship between T and C, between the couple and their shared child, B. Therefore, in the second divorce, the court must continue to address all relevant issues regarding the divorce between Mr. T and Ms. C, including the dispute over child custody (if requested).

There are opinions that disagree with the viewpoint that the court only handles the divorce between Mr. T and Ms. C and does not handle the request for shared child custody.

According to the current legal regulations, when the court handles cases related to marriage and family matters, including divorce disputes, it has the responsibility to consider and resolve all related issues, including marriage, divorce, and rights and obligations between spouses before and after divorce with children, for all cases (if requested). In the case of divorce and the dispute over child custody between Mr. T and Ms. C mentioned above, the following issues need to be clarified:

In 2013, the District People's Court X issued a judgment and decision granting the divorce of Mr. T and Ms. C and, at the same time, granting custody of their shared child, B, to Ms. C for nurturing. Mr. T and Ms. C are no longer bound by the marital relationship, but regarding the parent-child relationship between Mr. T, Ms. C, and their child, B, it still exists according to the provisions of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014. The court's decision to grant custody of B to Ms. C for nurturing must be understood as not being permanently valid and does not diminish B's legal position in the parent-child relationship (giving custody to Ms. C after divorce does not mean that B is no longer the shared child of the couple).

In addition, based on Article 58 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014, if there is no divorce, there will be no dispute over child custody. Therefore, when the divorce no longer exists (in 2014, the couple reconciled and registered their marriage according to legal regulations), this action has reestablished the marital relationship between T and C and between the couple and their shared child, B. Therefore, in the second divorce, the court must continue to address all relevant issues regarding the divorce between Mr. T and Ms. C, including the dispute over child custody (if requested).

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