From: Tenquestions and answers on registration and divorce of transnational marriage,by Xuhui Court, Shanghai, China 

Answer: Because divorce cases involve the dissolution of personal relations, under normal circumstances, the parties must appear in court in person. However, if the permanent residence is abroad and it is really inconvenient to return home, you can go through the notarization and certification procedures abroad, and entrust domestic lawyers, legal workers or relatives in line with the law as agents to appear in court. If you are a defendant, you should also notarize and authenticate the "reply", stating your marriage attitude, that is, whether you agree to divorce.