S'porean millionaire to pay S$5K maintenance to ex-wife who 'brought nothing but grief' to marriage

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Millionaire to pay S$5K maintenance to ex-wife who ‘brought nothing but grief’

A Singaporean millionaire was ordered to pay S$5,000 in maintenance to a woman he was briefly married to.

Justifying the amount, the judge overseeing the case described the woman as someone who “brought nothing but grief to the marriage”.

The woman was absent and did not have a lawyer during the hearing.

Singaporean millionaire met ex-wife through dating agency in Taiwan

According to The Straits Times (ST), the Singaporean man and the woman met in October 2018 through a dating agency in Taiwan and proceeded to enter a long-distance relationship for a year.

Even though the woman was sceptical about living in Singapore, the man somehow convinced her to move over in Nov 2019.

They tied the knot just a month later.

Source: Trung Nguyen from Pexels on Canva, for illustration purposes only

The 58-year-old man reportedly earned S$66,000 a month as a manager and had more than S$10 million in assets.

Despite having a degree in costume design, the 40-year-old woman did not work during the six-month period she spent here.

She also told the man over text that she wasn’t keen on doing any housework and “seemed bored”.

In May 2020, the woman left for Taiwan and promised she would return after a few months. This, however, did not happen.

The man claimed he longed for her return, but the woman requested him to buy an “expensive house” for her in Taiwan instead.

In June and October of that year, the man sent sums of money amounting to S$19,300 to cajole her to return.

The woman eventually returned in March 2021 — nearly a year after her departure.

Returned to Taiwan after spending 3 weeks in Singapore

However, the man’s “elation” did not last long.

In the three weeks following her return, the woman was reportedly difficult to live with and was persistent in finding faults with the man.

Source: junce from Getty Images on Canva, for illustration purposes only

She also requested money from the man on several occasions but was unsuccessful.

The woman eventually returned to Taiwan on 12 May 2021.

Woman did not submit documents & did not turn up for hearings

The man filed for divorce about two years later in April 2023.

Upon learning about the man’s application, the woman put up a “feeble” contest.

Despite being given extra time by the court, she failed to file the required affidavit.

An interim judgment was granted in July 2023 and the case moved to maintenance and division of matrimonial assets, reported ST.

In his judgement on Tuesday (27 Feb), High Court judge Choo Han Teck listed the instances when the woman ignored the court’s direction.

These included her failure to file documents and attend scheduled hearings.

The woman, however, was present at a hearing where she agreed to dissolve the marriage.

She mentioned that she wanted to claim maintenance at the hearing, but no amount was specified in the judgment.

During a subsequent mediation session on Zoom, the woman logged out halfway through and did not return.

When Justice Choo heard the case last Monday (19 Feb), the woman was again absent.

Singaporean millionaire ordered to pay S$5K lump sum to woman

In his judgement, Justice Choo said the woman brought “nothing but grief to the marriage”.

He added that she “added nothing” to the brief union, and that “there is nothing that can be awarded to her”.

As for maintenance, the High Court judge ordered the man to pay the woman a lump sum of S$5,000 as a “clean break”.

Justice Choo also remarked on a confession the man wrote in his affidavit.

The man, who has two adult children, reportedly wrote that he “longed for a supportive and peaceful relationship in [his] sunset years after being widowed”.

However, he lamented that the recent marriage had caused him “much grief”.

To this, Justice Choo offered a piece of life advice: