Originally posted by despondent:
hello, i am back again!!! i would like to bring up another topic abt te law for discussion. its abt alimony claims upon divorce...
we noe tat when a couple divorce, the female has the rite to claim alimony from the man especially if the man is the unfaithful party. nw it must be noted tat these laws were set during the times when women were the weaker sex n were dependent on the men for survival. however, i wanna point out tat nowadays, most women especially in singapore r self-sufficient n independent...they no longer need to rely on the husband's income for survival. moreover, survey has shown tat there r more n more women who r the unfaithful party in marriages.
my pont is tis...in an advancing society like tis...shldnt the law be amended to treat both sexes equally? maybe allow the men to claim alimony if the wife is the unfaithful party? when man unfaithful, he pays the price of paing alimony...but if woman is unfaithful, wad price she pay? do u tink the law is outdated in tis area? air ur views...
Alimony is awarded based on the principle that a spouse is entitled to the standard of living he or she has been accustomed to and the amount therefore may vary according to the period of marriage. Contrary to popular belief, fault in a marriage has very little to do with the award of alimony. The British court has recently ruled in two landmark cases which affirm this long-held principle. Faithfulness in a marriage is not an issue. However, to claim alimony the partner must be seen to have contributed to the marriage...non-financial contribution such as housework and bringing up children is considered sufficient for this purpose.
Men can claim alimony as well as wives...so the trick is to make sure you marry a richer spouse. If you separate, you stand to gain up to half the assets. That's why in the US, rich people resort to pre-nuptial agreements. Unfortunately, both in British and Singapore courts, pre-nuptial agreements are not binding and are not usually respected by the judge. For this reason, it is financially illogical to marry if you are much wealthier than your partner. Divorce is a very expensive gift to your partner.
That is one reason more and more couples choose to cohabit rather than get married in the UK.