validity of marriage if other party's annulment to previous marriage to a Japanese is not completed.

my brother got married to a filipina here in the Philippines through an agency.this agency was the one who fixed all the papers from his marriage to his visa going back to Japan.the wife was still using her Japanese last name.we asked the agency then if that would be OK and the agency said that they will take care of it and the marriage will be registered.n
after two years of marriage my brother decided to separate from the wife.now he wants to get it done however he was told that it was possible that their marriage is null and void because the wife told my brother and some friends mediating that the annullmenb from her previous marriage was not completed.
I need your advise on where should my brother start.My brother and his wife are both in Japan but the agency who wedded them is here in the Philippines.

Your brother needs to secure proof that there was indeed a first marriage entered into by his wife in Japan by getting a certificate of marriage and the copy of Japan's laws that prove that the marriage entered into by his wife was in accordance with Japan's laws. Such laws must be authenticated by the Japanese embassy in the Philippines and must be presented in court by your lawyer in order for him to file a petition for nullity of marriage on said ground.

Hire a lawyer who specializes in family law and international law to represent you in court and for him to file the necessary petitions in behalf of your brother.

Good luck.

thank you for your reply. can he file for nullity while he is in Japan?

Not yet, since he needs to provide his lawyer with the documents I mentioned in my previous post before he can file for such with his lawyer. His lawyer needs to have a basis in filing for the nullity of the marriage and he cannot just simply file a case without documents and evidences backing the case up.

after he gets all those documents can he file for a nullity while he is there? or does he have to be here since they got married here in the phils?

He may be able to do so via a special power of attorney granted by him to his hired lawyer. I am not sure about this, though, since I am not a lawyer yet.

Please consult with a lawyer to get more authoritative answers.

thank u.I appreciate your time.I will let my brother know.

Happy to be of help, with what little I know.

May your case be given the resolution it deserves in accordance with our pertinent laws and jurisprudence!

I hope so too.the wife had been in three separations already and she is far older than my brother. she knows a lot more than we do so we had to seek for insights ahead of what she may have against my brother.thank u for the help.I hope you can answer my questions again once the matter progresses.

I appreciate ur help.

I would hope that the lawyer that you will hire will be competent enough to answer all your legal queries for you, since that is part and parcel of his duties as your lawyer.

Still, feel free to post your questions here and I will do my best to answer it, with what little I know of the law.

Good luck.

thank u