Leong Mei Chuan v Chan Teck Hock David

• Court: District Court (Singapore)
• Judge: Emily Wilfred
• Judgment Date: 10 April 2000
• Neutral Citation: [2000] SGDC 13
• Citation: [2000] SGDC 13
• Published date: 19 September 2003

Judgment

GROUNDS OF DECISION

Background Facts

The petitioner ("wife") and the respondent ("husband") were lawfully married on 21^st September 1983 at the Singapore Marriage Registry. They have three (3) children to the marriage namely –

a. C (f) born on 15^th November 1985;

b. S (m) born on 18^th January 1989; and

c. V, born on 14^th July 1990.

2. On 21 November 1997 the wife filed a petition for divorce on the ground of the husband’s unreasonable behaviour and she subsequently filed a supplemental petition on 29^th July 1998 on the ground that the marriage had irretrievably broken down in that the husband had committed adultery and she found it intolerable to live with him.

3. The petition was heard on an uncontested basis on 24^th September 1998 and a decree nisi was granted on the same day. The issues of custody of the three children, maintenance of the wife and children and division of matrimonial assets were adjourned to a date to be heard in chambers.

4. The ancillary issues came for hearing before me on 4^th November, 6^th& 17^th December 1999 & 20^th January 2000 and after reviewing the evidence in the affidavits filed by the husband and the wife and submissions by counsel, I made the following orders on 20^th January 2000 -

(1) Petitioner shall have custody, care and control of the three (3) children of the marriage with reasonable access to the Respondent as follows

(i) overnight access once a month on every second last Friday of the month from Friday 10.30pm to Sunday 5.00pm;

(ii) first half of the school holidays in June and December with liberty to take the children out of Singapore. In the event the Respondent takes the children out of jurisdiction he shall –

(a) Provide Petitioner with details of their itinerary, contact numbers, addresses at least 5 days before the children are scheduled to leave Singapore;

(b) get the children to call Petitioner every 2 days and

(c) return the children’s passports to Petitioner within 24 hours of their return.

(iii) alternate public holidays from 2.00pm to 9.00pm;

(iv) either day before, the day after or on the day of the children’s birthdays for half the day;

(v) either Christmas day or New Year’s day from 2.00pm to 9.00pm to alternate each year;

(vi) half a day with all three children on Respondent’s birthday;

(vii) alternate overnight access during the Chinese New Year Holidays i.e from 9.00am of New Year’s Eve to 1.00pm of the 1^st day and in subsequent year overnight access from 1.00pm of 1^st day of Chinese New Year to the end of 2^nd day at 9.00pm;

(viii) when the Respondent returns to live in Singapore in February 2000, in addition to the access specified above in (ii) to (vii), he shall have access, in place of (i) as follows:

(a) every 1^st and 3^rd weekend of each month from Friday 10.30pm to Sunday 5.00pm; and

(b) every Wednesday of 2^nd and 4^th week of each month from 6.30pm to 9.30pm.

2. Respondent shall pay Petitioner a sum of $16,000 per month for the maintenance of three (3) children and wife ($5,000 per child per month and $1,000 for wife per month) with effect from 1^st January 2000 and thereafter on the 1^st of each month. Payment direct.

3. Respondent shall transfer all his rights, interest and title in the matrimonial home known as [address] ("matrimonial home") upon Petitioner paying him 40% of the net value of the matrimonial home based on the agreed value of $1,850,000 less outstanding loan to the mortgage bank. The Respondent shall refund to his CPF account from his share of the proceeds all monies utilised for the purchase of the matrimonial home together with accrued interest. The said transfer shall take place within 3 months of this order and the Petitioner shall bear the costs of the said Transfer.

4. Respondent shall transfer all his rights, interest and title in the property known as No.1 Blakehurst Drive, Robina Waters Gold Coast to the Petitioner absolutely, within 3 months from this order with no consideration and shall be solely liable for the outstanding mortgage loan secured on the property.

5. The Petitioner shall be entitled to 15% of the Respondent’s Dell stocks namely:

(a) his 111,100 shares purchased from the open market and valued at US$4,575,986.80 as at 4.11.99;

(b) his 10,821 shares bought from the Employee Stock Purchase Plan valued at US$445,695.00 as at 4.11.99;

(c) his gains of Dell shares vested and exercised by Respondent under the Non Statutory Option Agreement Scheme, amounting to US$2,573,328.00 less tax to be paid on such gains (proof of demand of payment from IRAS).

6. There shall be no division of Dell stocks in the Non-Statutory Stock Option Agreements which have yet to be vested in the Respondent.

7. Each party is to retain all other assets in his/her own name.

8. That CSV Holdings Pte Ltd be would up and the Petitioner and Respondent shall be liable for its debts and expenses of winding up in the proportion of 70-30% in favour of the Petitioner.

9. That the Orders of Court dated 21 August 1998 and 10^th March 1999 injuncting Respondent’s assets be discharged; and

10. Costs to the Petitioner to be taxed or agreed.

11. Liberty to apply.

12. Leave granted to extract Decree Nisi Absolute out of time.

Both parties, being dissatisfied, had appealed against my orders on custody, maintenance for the wife and children and the division of the matrimonial assets.

Custody of the children

5. At the hearing of the ancillary matters, there was no existing order made on the custody, care and control of the three children. They were residing with the Petitioner at the matrimonial home. The husband made several applications regarding access culminating in two Orders of Court dated 5^th August 1998 and 16^th April 1999 which set out in detail his stipulated time of access. The husband had asked for joint custody of the children with care and control to the wife which I declined to make and gave the wife sole custody, care and control of the children. In his Notice of Appeal, the Respondent prayed that the custody order be varied in that the he should be consulted and his consent obtained...