This Tribunal is a Catholic Church Tribunal, sometimes called an Ecclesiastical Tribunal, to which a person may present a Petition seeking the declaration of the nullity (annulment) of their marriage. The Armagh Inter-Diocesan Marriage Tribunal is one of four First Instance Tribunals in Ireland created in 1975, at the request of the Irish Episcopal Conference, by mandate of the Holy See. Being a regional Tribunal and not a purely diocesan one, this Tribunal serves seven Dioceses, most of which are geographically and politically within Northern Ireland; i.e. the Dioceses of Clogher, Armagh, Derry, Down & Connor, Dromore, Kilmore & Raphoe.
If this is your first ever visit to a site concerned with Church matters, and particularly the canonical process involved in the investigation of the alleged invalidity of a marriage, this site aims to offer some help and advice which might better equip a person to approach one of the constitutent diocesan offices of this Tribunal or another Tribunal in the proper ecclesiastical jurisdiction with the proper competence and authority to deal with your enquiry.
All Tribunals of the Catholic Church are governed by the Universal Law of the Catholic Church. With respect to the norms and procedures in marriage cases every Tribunal follows the particular procedural norms of the Code of Canon Law (which one can find in Book VII of the Code of Canon Law) and the more recent Instruction Dignitas Connubii promulgated by the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, which, though not law in the strict sense of the word, is a very helpful manual guiding the proper interpretation and implementation of the norms in the canonical investigation of marriage nullity cases. It is useful to both Tribunal staff and those unacquainted with the nullity process. Not surprisingly, since a Tribunal is a legal body, the language used in its everyday application of norms etc. will be quite legal and formal. This site is designed however to make the nullity process that little bit more accessible in the hope that your questions, assumptions or concerns may be answered, clarified or dispelled. This site is primarily aimed at those who are looking for an explanation of what nullity (annulment) is and what the process might entail. Have a look through the contents of our website or go directly to our FAQ page where we hope a great many of your immediate questions may be answered, at least, in part. It will, of course, be highly unlikely that you will get an answer to every question you have, but we hope this site may be a useful portal of contact with our Tribunal or other helpful sites on the same subject.