Seemingly only a short moment ago, our world was so very different. No electricity, no cars, no planes, no tv, no internet, no Wi-Fi, no smart phones, etc. How changed life is from just a hundred years ago. But are we done ‘evolving’ yet? Not by a long shot! Here comes the Metaverse.
What is the Metaverse?
Although in its infancy and still very undefined, the Metaverse is shaping up to be a new World that will incorporate much of our daily lives. Even though the Metaverse is termed ‘virtual’, all aspects of it will be indeed very real. Already, the Metaverse has its own money in various crypto currencies, ‘real’ estate and art are being sold and bought and broad consumer transactions are occurring.
Much of everyday life will soon shift into the Metaverse. And life in the Metaverse will not be merely limited to shopping, socializing and being entertained. One positive thing the Covid pandemic has proven is that much of our World can be very efficiently and effectively run in the Metaverse. We now have health care through ‘tele-medicine’, virtual Courtrooms where full legal trials are conducted and endless jobs that can be performed fully remotely. The Metaverse really will be a World where the average person spends a good deal of their day in – perhaps even the majority of their days.
Divorce in the Metaverse
Undoubtedly, the emerging World of the Metaverse will require a new kind of legal expertise to help successfully navigate it. Sure, common sense reveals that there will be basic contract, intellectual property, trademark, copyright and patent issues. But those obvious items merely scratch the surface. Metaverse lawyers will have to be keenly creative and skilled in all sorts of new areas. Will there be civil rights conflicts in the metaverse? Will there be privacy issues? How is one’s liberty affected? What role and rights will governments have through regulation and taxation? Will punishable crimes be committed within the metaverse? How will property rights work in a decentralized world? Will people be able to get legally married in the metaverse?
And perhaps most pertinent here, will one be able to get a divorce in the Metaverse that will have to be recognized and respected within – let’s say – the State of New York?
Will a Divorce Granted in the Metaverse Be Legally Binding?
If two people can go to Las Vegas, appear at a drive through Elvis wedding chapel and become legally married in a few short minutes while never leaving their car, then certainly there is a very plausible scenario where these same people would be able to become legally divorced through a proceeding in the Metaverse.
The Courts of New York State generally hold that the Court Orders of other States and foreign Countries are legally valid and enforceable under what is known as ‘comity’ or ‘full faith and credit’. Unless it can be proved that Order from the other State or foreign Country was obtained through the use of something deemed fraudulent, New York courts will generally recognize all the provisions of such Orders, including any agreement which may have been incorporated into it, unless modification is required by reason of some compelling public policy. This would extend to the dissolution of the marriage, property rights, financial obligations, child custody, etc.
From a pragmatic standpoint, the legal recognition of out of State Orders is absolutely vital to deal properly and fairly with the infinite numbers of Orders that would otherwise be put at risk without this clear policy – giving rise to complete chaos, uncertainty and undoing in a World of different people, Nations and diverse views and policies.
Certainly this notion of fairness and stability must extend to a divorce obtained in the Metaverse. So long as open and fair laws emerge in any given Metaverse and people can properly and thoroughly participate in that process, any order generated should then be recognized by this State. The only real question then becomes, will, in fact, bona fide laws and proceedings emerge in the Metaverse that would then legitimize the legal Orders generated in the Metaverse. If they do, then a compelling argument could be made that an order from the Metaverse should be treated no differently in this State than an Order from say Arkansas, Brazil, Kentucky or Italy.
Forward thinking lawyers will need to now prepare for the new reality of the Metaverse that will undoubtedly impact all legal issues. If they don’t, then they will be doing a real disservice to clients.
Steven J. Gildin, Esq.
