[Chatting] "My parents supported me..."My husband filed for divorce on the grounds of 'unfair treatment' when he succeeded."

□ Broadcast date and time: November 21, 2024 (Thursday)
□ Host: Attorney Jo In-seop
□ Cast: Attorney Ryu Hyun-joo

* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate information.

□ Reporter: I'm a housewife with three sons. My husband and I met for the first time when we were in college, we dated, and got married. At the time of marriage, my husband was a test-taker studying professional certificates and I was working, but I had a child, so I quickly got married. My parents, who can afford it, supported the wedding expenses and the newlyweds. It was difficult to raise a child alone after giving birth, so I joined my family and lived for 10 years like that. Meanwhile, my husband passed the examination and got a professional license. But there was little income during the probationary period. For that reason, my parents continued to support living expenses and children's education expenses. Fortunately, my husband started making good money two to three years ago and opened a private business about a year ago. However, when she gained economic power, her husband began to change. He said it was frustrating to live with his father-in-law and mother-in-law, so he asked for a separate family. Eventually, my husband and I moved to another area with no connection. But…... I thought my husband and I would get along well after the move, but this time we asked for a divorce, saying we couldn't communicate and were financially incompetent. When I refused, he left the house. Shortly after, I received a divorce complaint from my husband. The divorce complaint said that the unfair treatment of my father-in-law and mother-in-law and my economic irresponsibility were the reasons for liability. My husband told me to pay 500 million won for the property split. Even the apartment my parents gave me before the wedding is asking me to offer half of it, which is amazing. How should I respond?

◇ Lawyer Cho In-seop (hereinafter referred to as Cho In-seop): I don't think you did anything wrong, but my husband filed for divorce. Is this possible?

◆ Lawyer Ryu Hyun-joo (hereinafter referred to as Ryu Hyun-joo): If both couples agree to divorce, they can divorce by consultation without any special reason for divorce. However, if one side does not want a divorce, there must be a reason for divorce stipulated by the law. Article 840 of the Civil Code stipulates six causes for divorce in court, and if the content of your husband's claim does not fall under these reasons for divorce in court, the divorce claim can be dismissed. Also, appropriate evidence should be provided because the person claiming the divorce has to prove that there is a reason for the divorce. However, in conclusion, that's the case, and anyone can actually file a divorce complaint. That's why I was wrong just by the fact that I received the complaint, and sometimes there are people who blame themselves or get angry just by the fact that they became "defendants" of divorce proceedings, and this doesn't mean that I'm at fault for receiving the complaint at all, so you don't have to be upset.

◇ Jo In-seop: It seems that you have been subjected to economic irresponsibility and unfair treatment by your father-in-law because one of the reasons for the divorce claim to be received, but would it also be a reason for divorce if your father-in-law and mother-in-law treated unfairly?

◆ Ryu Hyun-joo: In Article 840 of the Civil Code, one of the causes of divorce is "when he or she is treated severely unfairly by his or her spouse or his immediate descendants." Here, the direct ancestor of the spouse will be a father-in-law, a mother-in-law, and a wife-in-law. In other words, receiving unfair treatment from the father-in-law and mother-in-law also wins the reason for divorce prescribed by law. However, in the case of the sender, the father-in-law and mother-in-law seem to have provided a lot of financial support, and there is no sign that they have treated their husbands unfairly in particular. A long period of time alone cannot be called "unfair treatment," and if your husband wants to claim the unfair treatment of his father-in-law and mother-in-law as the reason for divorce, he will need to provide adequate evidence.

◇ Jo In-seop: Can I dismiss my husband's divorce claim?

◆ Ryu Hyun-joo: In addition to the unfair treatment of his father-in-law and mother-in-law, the husband also considers his wife's financial inability as a reason for divorce. If we substitute his wife's financial inability into the reason for divorce in court, we can argue that it is a "other significant reason why it is difficult to continue marriage" in Article 840 No. 6 of the Civil Code. However, considering the fact that you were in charge of giving birth and raising children and that your parents provided full economic support, it seems difficult to be a reason for divorce just because you did not do economic activities yourself. In order for economic incompetence to be a reason for divorce on trial, it should be to deliberately avoid economic activities for years even though you have multiple children, are not in charge of raising households, and you can earn enough money. To sum up the above circumstances, it seems that you have no reason for divorce at all, so you can seek the dismissal of the divorce. However, even in such a case, if the judge sees no possibility of recovery of this family, a divorce may be ruled. Therefore, you will need to show a serious effort and attitude to restore your relationship with your husband when you file a lawsuit.

◇ Cho In-seop: You were given an apartment by your parents before you got married, but is this also subject to division?

◆ Ryu Hyun-joo: Real estate donated before marriage is your "special property," but if the other spouse contributed to the formation or maintenance of the unique property, it may be included in the property division in case of divorce. You appear to have been married at least 10 years, and your husband made a single income during the marriage. Although her husband's income has not been very high for a long time and his parents have provided a lot of financial support, in this case, it would be hard to see that he has no contribution to maintaining his unique property, so apartments donated before marriage are expected to be included in the division. However, when calculating the contribution to the division of assets, the 50% claimed by the husband seems too excessive, and you should respond in a way that increases your contribution by comprehensively considering the price of the apartment and the amount of money your parents provided financially.

◇ Cho In-seop: Will the business that my husband opened a year ago be subject to property division?

◆ Ryu Hyun-joo: Even if your husband has just opened the business, if the money spent on opening the business is the money that was formed during the marriage, of course, the business is subject to property division. And, when you set up a business, you usually get a lot of loans, but there are many people who say that the business is not subject to division and claim that only the loans are subject to division. However, if workplace-related debts are subject to division, of course, workplaces are also subject to division. In this case, the value of the workplace must be assessed in an appropriate way, so that you can secure a fair share of property.

◇ Cho In-seop: Raising three children costs a lot of money, but he filed a divorce complaint and stopped paying for it. How should I handle this?

◆ Ryu Hyun-joo: If there are any matters that must be urgently legally enforced, such as child support, interview negotiations, and no access during the divorce lawsuit, you can ask the court for a "pre-disposal decision." The pre-disposal decision is to temporarily set rights and obligations before the lawsuit is finalized, and typically, there is a pre-disposal of child support. However, it is important to keep in mind that even if you apply for a preliminary disposition, a decision will not be made immediately, and it usually takes about one to two months. And if your husband did not pay child support during the lawsuit, you can claim it as "past child support" later and receive it at once.

◇ Jo In-seop: Now, to summarize what we've done so far... Being sued by your husband doesn't mean you're liable, and if there's no legal reason for divorce, you can prevent it. The unfair treatment of the father-in-law and mother-in-law may be a reason for divorce, but it seems difficult to admit because evidence is needed and there has been economic support. Your financial inability was not deliberately avoided, so it seems that you can dismiss your husband's divorce claim. In principle, apartments donated before marriage can be included in the property division in case of divorce if there is a unique property or a contribution from the husband. If your husband's workplace opens with funds formed during marriage, it will be subject to property division. If your husband has paid for living expenses, you can ask the court to decide on the preliminary disposition of child support expenses. So far, I've been with lawyer Ryu Hyun-joo.

◆ Ryu Hyun-joo: Thank you.

◇ Cho In-seop: You can listen to <Attorney Cho In-seop's Counseling Office> again on YouTube and the website. If you have any questions or suggestions, please leave a message on the consultation bulletin board on the website.