UMT v UMU [2018] SGHCF 16

Outcome: Both appeals allowed in part, dismissed in part.

Facts

1           Parties were married for about 22 years and Interim Judgment was granted in 2016. Parties had three children, who were 22, 19 and 13 years old. A key dispute in the appeal was whether damages received as compensation for Husband for a road traffic accident in April 2012 was a matrimonial asset.

Court’s Decision:

2           Compensation for tortious wrongdoing aims to restore a person to a position that he or she would have been in had the wrong not been committed against him or her. Compensation for pain and suffering are not assets acquired by the efforts of a spouse during marriage.: at [9]

3           There is no element of effort in respect of damages received as compensation for the victim of a tort for his personal suffering. Lottery winnings could be said to be part of the good fortune to be shared by both spouses in a marital partnership, while tortious damages are personal to the injured spouse.: at [11].

4           Some components of compensation, such as lost earnings due to the accident prior to the divorce, may be considered assets acquired as they are intended as compensation for the income the spouse would have expended effort to acquire had he or she not been injured. Such income would have been earned if the accident had not occurred and would be subject to division.: at [12].

5           Only the proportion of the Compensation corresponding to special damages and the Husband’s past loss of earnings until the date of Interim Judgment, as well as interest, should be included in the pool of matrimonial assets. Special damages are to reimburse the victim for expenses incurred, and where such expenses have been made out of the matrimonial pool earlier, they should be placed back into the pool.: at [16].

6           The sum awarded for future loss of earnings in Husband’s personal injury suit is relevant to his ability to pay maintenance.: at [15] and [40].

The full text of the decision can be found here.

This summary is provided to assist the public to have a better understanding of the Court’s judgment. It is not intended to be a substitute for the reasons of the Court. All numbers in bold font and square brackets refer to the corresponding paragraph numbers in the Court’s judgment.