Divorce at the Notary: Protection of Creditors’ Interests

Abstract In order to continue to grow and prosper, modern society is increasingly adopting the products of companies, institutions, and organizations providing credit services. However, as a result, dissolution of a marriage tends to pose problems and raises unavoidable questions concerning the determination of the nature of the obligations of the spouses and the division of these obligations, which is why it is quite common in divorce cases for a third party, a creditor whose interests also need to be protected, to be involved. In cases concerning family relations, protection of the public interest predominates because protection of the legal interests of the spouses as well as the creditors must be guaranteed, also the proportionality of the protection of the legal interests between the parties must be achieved, because everyone has the right to defend their violated rights, and the state must ensure the protection of those legal interests. However, this protection is often compromised due to the lack of information available to notaries, which could be alleviated by more extensive use of technology. The article’s aim is to analyze the amendments to the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania as of 1 January 2023 concerning extrajudicial divorce at a notary, its advantages and drawbacks, as well as to discuss the existing and the possibility of adaptation of new technological solutions with an aim of improving the protection of creditors in the divorce process.