From law practice: when spouses don’t share money

The case of Mrs. Ivana

Mrs Ivana met her future husband Radek while she was still studying at university. She was preparing to become a nurse while he was studying economics. They both didn’t have a penny at the time, but that didn’t bother Ivana at all. She would have liked Radek even if he had been on the dole.

After college, Ivana and Radek got married and moved into a small rented apartment. Ivana started working as a nurse in a nearby hospital. Radek, however, had no intention of starting work. He planned to start his own successful business. As it happens, this took some time. During this time, Ivana supported Radek financially. All this time she believed that Radek would succeed and they would live much better than now.

And it really happened. In five years, Radek built a very successful business that provided him with a net income exceeding one hundred thousand crowns every month. Ivana, however, had nothing to show for it. She herself had to give up her job because she got pregnant, but she didn’t see a single crown of Radek’s earnings.

Radek began to visit luxury restaurants regularly and alone. Every year he went on at least two holidays to a five-star hotel by himself. He started wearing only designer clothes and bought a new motorbike.

Ivana, on the other hand, took care of the joint household and the child. The parental allowance paid for groceries and all the necessities for herself and the child. Often her funds did not work out, so she had to borrow money from her mother as well. Radek paid only the rent and never lifted a finger at home.

Ivana tried to resolve the situation with him in a reasonable way, by agreement. However, Radek insisted that he had earned the money and therefore it was his alone and if Ivana wanted her own money, she should start working. But of course this was not possible, because Ivana had to take care of their one-year-old son. With desperation in her voice, she therefore turned to the Available Advocate.

Spouses must share a level

Many of us must be clenching our fists over the case of Mrs Ivana. The injustice of her case is radiating from her and we cannot describe her husband Radek as anything other than a miser and a selfish person. But how does the law view the whole situation and does Mrs Ivana have a voice in her situation?

Yes, she does, specifically in the Civil Code. The Code provides for mutual maintenance between spouses to the extent that both spouses have the same material and cultural standard. This maintenance obligation takes precedence in law over any other maintenance obligation, including traditional child support.

If they have joint finances, there is nothing to solve. However, there may be a problem if they have separate finances. So if one spouse earns, say, 10 times as much as the other spouse, they need to share so that they are on equal footing – so that they can afford the same things and share the same standard of living. And this doesn’t just apply to covering the basic necessities of life, but also to the aforementioned vacations, expensive restaurants, and designer clothes. If Radek can afford them, then Ivana should be able to afford them too.

What about the prenuptial agreement?

Aprenuptial agreement is used to regulate property relations after the wedding. For example, it can be used to contractually agree on the separation of assets. However, it can never violate the law and therefore cannot abolish the maintenance obligation between the spouses. Mrs Ivana would therefore be entitled to the same material and cultural standard as her husband even if they had drawn up a prenuptial (or marriage) agreement before or even during the marriage.

How can Mrs. Ivana defend herself?

Since Ms. Ivana is legally entitled to her husband’s money and all reasonable efforts to negotiate have failed, we prepared a spousal support compliance notice, which was subsequently sent by our attorney directly to Mr. Radek. He finally began to take the matter seriously and agreed to share the money with Ivana.

If Radek continued to refuse his obligation, even after receiving a formal demand from the lawyer, Ivana could pursue her claim for maintenance in court. Here, the sooner the better. For maintenance can be awarded at the earliest from the time when the application was made to the court, i.e. from the date when the application was made to the court. It cannot therefore be granted retrospectively, as is the case, for example, with child maintenance. In making its decision, the court will take into account the income of the spouses, their expenses and how they are set up to care for the household and the child(ren).

Summary

Mrs Ivana contacted the Affordable Advocate, claiming that her husband was refusing to share finances with her. Ivana, who looks after the household and the child, finds herself in financial distress while her husband lives a life of luxury with no regard for her. According to the Civil Code, spouses are obliged to share the standard of living. If there is a mismatch, as in Ivana’s case, she can pursue her rights in court.