Publication Type
Journal Article
Publication
Singapore Law Journal (Lexicon)
Publication Date
1-2022
Abstract
Section 46(1) of the Women’s Charter undergirds the sacrosanct institution that is marriage – it lays out its moral basis and expresses society’s hopes and expectations of the ideal marital relationship: marriage is an equal cooperative partnership of different efforts for mutual benefit. It is thus no surprise that even when a marriage is terminated, the division of matrimonial assets is also founded upon this prevailing ideology. However, as opposed to equal division, Singapore law dictates a “just and equitable” division of matrimonial assets, where wide discretion and power is vested in the judiciary. This legal rule has been criticised to be vague and unpredictable, which in turn fuels more litigation and contradicts an equally important principle in family divorce law – harmonious termination of marriage and resolution of disputes with minimum acrimony and distress as far as possible. This article will examine the underlying rationale for the present law on division of matrimonial assets and the problems with the current approach, explore fundamental concepts such as the notion of fairness and the partnership theory of marriage, before concluding with the possible reforms which may be adopted by Singapore’s law on division of matrimonial assets.
Disciplines
Asian Studies | Dispute Resolution and Arbitration | Family Law
ISSN/ISBN
2737-5048
Publisher
SMU Lexicon, SMU School of Law
Version
publishedVersion
Copyright Holder
Singapore Management University
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Format
application/PDF
Citation
TEO, Jia En.
Reforming Singapore’s law on division of matrimonial assets. (2022). Singapore Law Journal (Lexicon). 2, 53.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sljlexicon/16
Volume
2
Page
53