Wong Sin Ping v Heng Siew Pheng @ Heng A Peng

JurisdictionSingapore
JudgeHamidah Bte Ibrahim
Judgment Date28 September 2000
Neutral Citation[2000] SGDC 42
Published date19 September 2003
Year2000
Citation[2000] SGDC 42
CourtDistrict Court (Singapore)

Judgment

GROUNDS OF DECISION

1. The parties were married on the 21/8/1975 at the Singapore marriage registry. There are 2 children to the marriage, a son aged 23 and a daughter aged 12. A decree nisi dissolving the marriage was granted on 16/11/1999 on the husband’s petition and the wife’s cross-petition that the marriage had broken down irretrievably because the husband and wife had behaved unreasonably. The issues on custody, maintenance for the wife and children and the division of matrimonial assets were adjourned to be heard in chambers.

2. There were heard before me on 14/7/00 and I made the following orders:-

1) By consent: Petitioner and Respondent to have joint custody of the only child of the marriage, namely E (f) born on 19/2/88 with care and control to the Respondent and Petitioner to have access once a week either on Saturday or Sunday from 9:00am to 9:00pm and it is further ordered that

2) Maintenance order made on 27/10/99 for Respondent and child to stand.

3) That the matrimonial property at [address], is to be sold in the open market within 6 months from today and the proceeds of sale, less the outstanding loan and all reasonable expenses connected to sale shall be divided in the proportion of 45% to the Petitioner(husband) and 55% to the Respondent(wife) with each party making the necessary refund to their CPF accounts from their respective shares,

4) Petitioner to be responsible for town council, PUB and TAS bills of the matrimonial property up to the completion of the sale of the matrimonial property.

5) Liberty to apply.

6) No order as to costs.

3. The wife has now appealed against paragraphs 2 and 3 of the above orders.

4. From a reading of the wife’s notice of appeal, I note that she is now seeking an order that she be granted an option to purchase the husband’s share and interest in the matrimonial property by refunding his CPF account and giving him 45% of the market value less the outstanding loan and refunds to the parties CPF accounts. Further, in the event she is unable to exercise the option, she is agreeable to a sale in the open market and a division in the proportions as stated in paragraph 3 of the above orders.

5. It would appear then that the wife is satisfied with the orders I have made with regard to the matrimonial property. However, her claim in seeking an option to purchase the husband’s share was never canvassed fully before me. This should have been done so that the husband could have been given an opportunity to respond and state his position as to whether the wife ought to pay a premium for the right of first option to purchase his share. At the time of the divorce, the parties were still staying together in the matrimonial property. The wife will obviously get a greater advantage over the husband if the option is granted to her...

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