UBD v UBE: Division of Matrimonial Assets & Wife's Maintenance in Divorce
In the divorce case of UBD v UBE, the Family Justice Courts of Singapore addressed the division of matrimonial assets and the wife's maintenance. The court ordered the sale of the matrimonial property, a 60:40 division of assets in favor of the husband, and a lump sum maintenance payment of $15,000 to the wife. The husband is a doctor, and the wife is a professional counselor. The court considered the parties' direct and indirect contributions to the marriage.
1. Case Overview
1.1 Court
Family Justice Courts of the Republic of Singapore1.2 Outcome
Orders made for division of matrimonial assets and maintenance for the wife.
1.3 Case Type
Family
1.4 Judgment Type
Grounds of Decision
1.5 Jurisdiction
Singapore
1.6 Description
Divorce case concerning the division of matrimonial assets and maintenance for the wife. The court orders a 60:40 asset division in favor of the husband.
1.7 Decision Date
2. Parties and Outcomes
| Party Name | Role | Type | Outcome | Outcome Type | Counsels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UBD | Plaintiff | Individual | 60% share of matrimonial assets | Partial | Yee May Kuen Peggy Sarah, Audrey Liaw Shu Juan |
| UBE | Defendant | Individual | 40% share of matrimonial assets and lump sum maintenance | Partial | Parhar Sunita Sonya |
3. Judges
| Judge Name | Title | Delivered Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Valerie Thean | Judicial Commissioner | Yes |
4. Counsels
| Counsel Name | Organization |
|---|---|
| Yee May Kuen Peggy Sarah | PY Legal LLC |
| Audrey Liaw Shu Juan | PY Legal LLC |
| Parhar Sunita Sonya | S. S. Parhar Law Corporation |
4. Facts
- The parties married on 6 April 1988 and have two sons.
- The husband is a doctor working as a general practitioner.
- The wife was a teacher and has been a professional counselor since September 2016.
- The husband moved out of the matrimonial home on 1 January 2011.
- The husband commenced divorce proceedings on 9 December 2014.
- Interim judgment was granted on 19 January 2015.
- The matrimonial assets included a property, a shophouse, insurance policies, shares, bank accounts, and CPF accounts.
5. Formal Citations
- UBD v UBE, Divorce Transfer No 5830 of 2014, [2017] SGHCF 14
6. Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Parties married in Singapore | |
| Husband moved out of the matrimonial home | |
| Husband commenced divorce proceedings | |
| Interim judgment granted by consent | |
| Ancillary matters heard and dealt with by the court | |
| Orders made for division of matrimonial assets and maintenance for the Wife | |
| Grounds of Decision issued |
7. Legal Issues
- Division of Matrimonial Assets
- Outcome: The court ordered a 60:40 division of matrimonial assets in favor of the husband.
- Category: Substantive
- Sub-Issues:
- Valuation of medical practice
- Direct and indirect contributions
- Global assessment methodology vs. classification methodology
- Maintenance for Wife
- Outcome: The court awarded the wife a lump sum maintenance of $15,000.
- Category: Substantive
- Sub-Issues:
- Lump sum maintenance
- Self-sufficiency of wife
8. Remedies Sought
- Division of Matrimonial Assets
- Maintenance for Wife
9. Cause of Actions
- Divorce
- Division of Matrimonial Assets
- Maintenance
10. Practice Areas
- Divorce
- Family Law
- Asset Division
11. Industries
- Healthcare
- Legal Services
12. Cited Cases
| Case Name | Court | Affirmed | Citation | Jurisdiction | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TND v TNC and another appeal | Singapore Court of Appeal | Yes | [2017] SGCA 34 | Singapore | Cited for the Valuation Rule, stating that matrimonial assets should be valued at the date of the ancillaries hearing unless a departure is warranted. |
| TDT v TDS and another appeal and another matter | Unknown | Yes | [2016] 4 SLR 145 | Singapore | Cited in relation to the Valuation Rule for valuing matrimonial assets. |
| ARY v ARX and another appeal | Unknown | Yes | [2016] 2 SLR 686 | Singapore | Cited for the Delineation Rule, stating that the starting point for delineating the pool of matrimonial assets should be the date that interim judgment is granted. |
| Yeo Chong Lin v Tay Ang Choo Nancy and another appeal | Unknown | Yes | [2011] 2 SLR 1157 | Singapore | Cited to support the principle that if a spouse invests funds from his or her bank account, he or she should bear the liabilities or enjoy the profits from such investment, so long as the original funds used for that investment were restored to the common pool. |
| NK v NL | Unknown | Yes | [2007] 3 SLR(R) 743 | Singapore | Cited regarding the two methodologies which may be applied in clustering matrimonial assets in preparation for division: the global assessment methodology and the classification methodology. |
| ANJ v ANK | Unknown | Yes | [2015] 4 SLR 1043 | Singapore | Cited regarding the structured approach to dividing matrimonial assets. |
| TNC v TND | Unknown | Yes | [2016] 3 SLR 1172 | Singapore | Cited as an example where pre-marriage properties were differentiated. |
| TNL v TNK and another appeal and another matter | Unknown | Yes | [2017] 1 SLR 609 | Singapore | Cited to support the philosophy of marriage being an equal partnership. |
| Parra v Parra | English Court of Appeal | Yes | [2003] 1 FLR 942 | England | Cited for the principle that judgments in family cases need to be simple in structure and simply explained. |
| Twiss, Christopher James Hans v Twiss, Yvonne Prendergast | Singapore Court of Appeal | Yes | [2015] SGCA 52 | Singapore | Cited regarding the three broad steps of the ANJ approach. |
| Chan Tin Sun v Fong Quay Sim | Unknown | Yes | [2015] 2 SLR 195 | Singapore | Cited regarding the principle that only misconduct that is both extreme and undisputed should be taken into consideration when the court exercises its powers under s 112(1) of the WC to order the division of the parties’ matrimonial assets. |
| ATE v ATD | Singapore Court of Appeal | Yes | [2016] SGCA 2 | Singapore | Cited regarding the principle that the law encourages former wives who are able to gain self-sufficiency to do so and that the court’s power to order maintenance is supplementary to the court’s power to divide matrimonial assets. |
| Tan Hwee Lee v Tan Cheng Guan and another appeal and another matter | Unknown | Yes | [2012] 4 SLR 785 | Singapore | Cited as a precedent where the Court of Appeal applied equal division in a marriage of 28 years. |
| Yow Mee Lan v Chan Kai Buan | High Court | Yes | [2000] 2 SLR(R) 659 | Singapore | Cited as a precedent where equal division was applied in a marriage of 26 years. |
| BJZ v BKA | High Court of Singapore | Yes | [2013] SGHC 149 | Singapore | Cited as an example of where an adverse inference is drawn against a party in relation to one class of asset and the court wishes to confine the consequences of that adverse inference to the relevant class of assets. |
| AJR v AJS | High Court | Yes | [2010] 4 SLR 617 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that in most marriage partnerships it is largely fortuitous as to which party contributes direct towards the acquisition of matrimonial assets and which party pays for other family expenditure. |
13. Applicable Rules
| Rule Name |
|---|
| No applicable rules |
14. Applicable Statutes
| Statute Name | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|
| Women’s Charter (Cap 353, 2009 Rev Ed) | Singapore |
15. Key Terms and Keywords
15.1 Key Terms
- Matrimonial assets
- Division of assets
- Maintenance
- Interim judgment
- Direct contribution
- Indirect contribution
- Global assessment methodology
- Classification methodology
- Valuation Rule
- Delineation Rule
15.2 Keywords
- divorce
- matrimonial assets
- maintenance
- family law
- ancillary matters
- singapore
16. Subjects
- Family Law
- Divorce
- Matrimonial Assets
- Maintenance
17. Areas of Law
- Family Law
- Matrimonial Assets
- Division of Matrimonial Assets
- Maintenance