Paternal filiation is established by presumption and may only be disavowed by a judicial decision.
Family Code (Moudawana)
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Paternal filiation derives from: 1- conjugal relations (Al Firach); 2- the acknowledgment of the father (Iqrar); 3- sexual intercourse by error (Choubha). - 55 -
Conjugal relations are proven by the same means as marriage. Conjugal relations, together with their conditions, constitute irrefutable proof establishing paternal filiation. They may be contested only by the husband, following the procedure of the oath of anathema (Liâane) or by means of a formal expertise, and provided that: -…
The paternal filiation of the child is established by conjugal relations (Al Firach): 1) if this child is born at least six months after the date of conclusion of the marriage and provided that the possibility of conjugal relations between the spouses is plausible, whether the marriage deed is valid or defective; 2) if the child is born during the year following the date of separation.
When a woman becomes pregnant following sexual relations by error (Choubha) and gives birth to a child during the period between the minimum and maximum duration of pregnancy, the paternal filiation of that child is established with regard to the person who had such relations. This paternal filiation is established by all legally provided means of proof.
If the engagement has taken place and there has been mutual consent, but compelling circumstances have prevented the drawing up of the marriage deed and signs of pregnancy appear in the fiancée, this pregnancy is imputed to the fiancé for sexual relations by error, if the following conditions are met: - 56 - a) the engagement wa…
When paternal filiation is established, even following a defective marriage, sexual relations by error, or an acknowledgment of paternity (Istilhak), it produces all its effects. It bars marriages prohibited on grounds of alliance or breastfeeding and gives entitlement to the maintenance allowance owed to relatives as well as to inheritance.
Paternal filiation is established by conjugal relations (Al Firach), the father's admission, the testimony of two adoul, evidence deduced from hearsay and by any legally provided means, including judicial expertise.
Only a judgment may lead to the disavowal of a child's paternal filiation with regard to the husband or decide that the wife's pregnancy is not the work of the latter, in accordance with Article 153 above.
Paternal filiation is established by the father's admission (Iqrar) recognizing the child's filiation, even during his last illness, in accordance with the following conditions: 1) the father making the admission must enjoy his mental faculties; 2) the paternal filiation of the acknowledged child may be established only if there…
Only the father may establish a child's filiation by admission of paternity, to the exclusion of any other person.
The admission of paternity is established by authentic deed or by a handwritten and unequivocal declaration of the person making that admission. TITLE II: CHILD CUSTODY (HADANA) CHAPTER ONE: GENERAL PROVISIONS
Child custody consists in preserving the child from anything that could be prejudicial to him, educating him and safeguarding his interests. The person responsible for custody must, as far as possible, take all measures necessary for the preservation and security, both physical and moral, of the child subject to custody, and saf…
Child custody is incumbent upon the father and the mother as long as the conjugal ties subsist.
If none of the possible persons entitled to custody agrees to assume it, or if, although accepting it, they do not meet the required conditions, the interested parties or the public prosecutor refer the matter to the court, which decides on the choice of the most suitable person among the child's close relatives or among other persons. Failing that, the court opts for one of the institutions authorized for that purpose.
Custody lasts until the child reaches the age of legal majority, whether male or female. In the event of the breakdown of the parents' conjugal relationship, the child may, at the age of fifteen completed, choose which of his father or mother will assume his custody. In the absence of the father and the mother, the child may cho…
Remuneration due for custody and the expenses incurred by it shall be borne by the person responsible for the child's maintenance. They are distinct from the remuneration due for breastfeeding and maintenance. The mother may not claim remuneration for the custody of her children during the marital relationship or during the observance of the waiting period (Idda), in the case of revocable divorce. - 59 -
The housing expenses of the child subject to custody are distinct from maintenance, the remuneration due for custody and other expenses. The father must provide his children with housing or pay the amount of the rent for said housing as estimated by the court, subject to the provisions of Article 191 below. The child subject to…
The father or legal representative and the mother who has custody of the child must carefully ensure the education and school orientation of the child subject to custody. However, the child may spend the night only at the home of the person ensuring custody, unless the judge, in the child's interest, decides otherwise. The perso…
The person entitled to custody recovers his right when the impediment preventing him from exercising it is removed. The court may reconsider the conferment of custody in the child's interest. - 60 - CHAPTER II: PERSONS ENTITLED TO CUSTODY AND THEIR ORDER OF PRIORITY
Custody shall be entrusted first to the mother, then to the father, and then to the child's maternal grandmother. Failing that, the court shall decide, on the basis of the presumptions available to it, and always in the child's interest, to award custody to one of the closest relatives most capable of assuming it. The court shal…
The court may call upon the services of a social worker to establish a report relating to the housing of the person responsible for custody and on the conditions in which that person provides for the basic material and moral needs of the child entrusted to his custody. CHAPTER III: CONDITIONS FOR THE CONFERMENT OF CUSTODY AND CAUSES OF ITS FORFEITURE
The conditions for the conferment of custody are: 1) legal majority for persons other than the child's father and mother; 2) uprightness and honesty; 3) the capacity to raise the child under custody, to ensure his safeguarding and protection in religious, physical and moral terms, and to oversee his schooling; 4) the candidate f…
The marriage of the woman ensuring custody, other than the mother, entails forfeiture of custody, except in the following two cases: 1) if her spouse is a relative of the child with whom he has an impediment to marriage or if he is the child's legal representative; 2) if she is the child's legal representative.
The marriage of the mother responsible for custody of her child shall not entail forfeiture of her right to custody in the following cases: 1) if the child has not exceeded the age of seven years or if separation from his mother causes him harm; 2) if the child subject to custody is suffering from an illness or disability making…
A person eligible to exercise the right of custody who remains silent for one year after becoming aware of the consummation of the marriage of the woman to whom custody of the child is entrusted shall forfeit the right to custody, except in cases of compelling reasons.
The father, the mother and the close relatives of the child subject to custody, and all third parties, must inform the public prosecutor's office of all harms to which the child may be exposed, so that it may take the necessary measures to preserve the child's rights, including requesting forfeiture of custody. - 62 -
A change of residence within Morocco by the woman assuming custody of the child or by the child's legal representative shall not entail forfeiture of custody, except in cases of grounds established before the court, taking into account the child's interest, the particular conditions of the father or legal representative and the distance separating the child from his legal representative.
The court may, at the request of the public prosecutor's office or the legal representative of the child subject to custody, provide, in the decision granting custody or by a subsequent decision, for the prohibition of the child being taken on a trip outside Morocco without the agreement of his legal representative. The public p…
The father or mother who does not have custody of the child has the right to visit the child and to receive the child.
The father and mother may agree, in an agreement, on the organization of visitation and communicate it to the court, which records its content in the decision granting custody. - 63 -
In the event of disagreement between the father and mother, the court shall fix, in the decision granting custody, the visitation periods and shall specify the time and place thereof in such a manner as to prevent, as far as possible, fraudulent maneuvers in the execution of the decision. For this purpose, the court shall take i…
If, following new circumstances, the organization of visitation decided by agreement between the father and mother or by judicial decision becomes prejudicial to either of the two parties or to the child subject to custody, revision of that organization may be requested in order to adapt it to the new circumstances.
The court shall take all measures it deems appropriate, including modification of the organization of visitation as well as forfeiture of custody in the event of failure or fraudulent maneuvers in the execution of the agreement or decision organizing visitation.
In the event of the death of the father or mother of the child subject to custody, the father and mother of the deceased shall substitute for the deceased in the right of visitation, as organized by the preceding provisions.
In any event, for the application of the provisions of this chapter, the court shall take into account the interest of the child subject to custody. - 64 - TITLE III: OF THE MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE (NAFAQA) CHAPTER ONE: GENERAL PROVISIONS
Every person meets his needs from his own resources, except as otherwise provided by law. The obligation of maintenance arises from marriage, kinship and undertaking.
No one is obliged to provide for the needs of others except to the extent that he can provide for his own needs. Every person is presumed solvent until proof to the contrary.
Maintenance includes food, clothing, medical care, the children's education and everything usually considered indispensable, subject to the provisions of Article 168 above. For the assessment of the charges inherent in the aforementioned needs, account shall be taken, by reference to an average of the income of the person liable…
The court shall base itself, for the estimation of the maintenance allowance, on the declarations of both parties and on the evidence they produce, subject to the provisions of Articles 85 and 189 above. The court may call upon experts for this purpose. A ruling shall be given in matters of maintenance allowance within a maximum period of one month .
The court shall determine the means of enforcement of the judgment ordering the maintenance allowance and the housing charges to be charged - 65 - against the property of the person liable for the allowance or shall order deduction at source from his income or salary. It shall determine, where appropriate, the guarantees likely…
No request seeking an increase or decrease in the maintenance allowance agreed upon or decided judicially shall be admissible, except in exceptional circumstances, before the expiry of a period of one year.
When the person liable to pay a maintenance allowance does not have the means to pay it to all those whom the law obliges him to maintain, he must, in order of priority, provide first for the needs of the wife, then for those of the children of both sexes of tender age, then for those of the daughters, then for those of the sons, then for the needs of his mother and, finally, for those of his father. CHAPTER II: OF THE MAINTENANCE OF THE WIFE
The husband must provide for the maintenance of his wife from the consummation of the marriage. The same right to a maintenance allowance is recognized for the wife who has invited her husband to consummate the marriage, after the conclusion of the act.
The maintenance allowance granted to the wife by judgment shall take effect from the date on which the husband ceased to provide for the maintenance obligation incumbent upon him and shall not be subject to prescription. However, the wife who refuses to return to the conjugal domicile after being ordered to do so loses her right to the allowance. - 66 -
In the case of revocable divorce, the wife loses her right to housing, while retaining the maintenance allowance, if she leaves the domicile where she must observe the waiting period (Idda), without the approval of her husband or without valid reason. In the case of irrevocable divorce, the maintenance allowance is due to the pr…
The maintenance allowance due to parents shall be provided by the children to their father and mother and by the father and mother to their children, in accordance with the provisions of this Code. SECTION I: - OF THE MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE DUE TO CHILDREN
The father must provide for the maintenance of his children until their majority or until twenty-five full years for those pursuing their studies. In all cases, the daughter loses her right to maintenance only if she has her own resources or when her maintenance is incumbent upon her husband. The father must continue to ensure the maintenance of his children with disabilities and incapable of obtaining resources.
When the father is wholly or partially unable to provide for the maintenance of his children and the mother is well-off, she must assume the maintenance allowance pro rata to the amount that the father is unable to provide. - 67 -
The payment of arrears of the maintenance allowance, ordered by judgment for the benefit of the children, takes effect from the date of cessation of payment of the said allowance.