Court recognises paternity of 3-year-old girl after lengthy battle

TDT | Manama

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After a lengthy legal battle, a Sharia court has confirmed the paternity of a three-year-old girl in a case filed by her mother against her husband and the Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs.

Lawyers Abduldhim Hubail and Sayed Ali Al Mahfoodh, representing the mother, explained that their client sought to prove the legitimacy of her one-year temporary marriage, establish the marital relationship, and confirm her daughter’s paternity.

Case documents reveal that the plaintiff and defendant entered into an unregistered temporary marriage in the plaintiff's Asian home country. The plaintiff became pregnant during the marriage and gave birth in Bahrain. The couple later formalised their relationship with a permanent marriage contract. The plaintiff argued that her husband had acknowledged the temporary marriage, accepted the child as his, and confirmed she was born within wedlock.

During court hearings, the couple testified that their temporary marriage began on December 2, 2020, followed by the permanent contract on August 8, 2021. Their daughter was born on November 8, 2021. They both requested the court to affirm her paternity.

However, the Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs disputed the claim. It argued that the marital status recorded in the permanent marriage contract, issued by the Ministry of Justice, could not validate the temporary marriage. The directorate also noted that the plaintiff had not provided proof of her conversion to Islam prior to the temporary marriage. According to the permanent marriage contract, her conversion occurred after the temporary union, making the temporary marriage invalid under Islamic law.