Daughter-in-law secretly taking loans to help her parents' family: "Criticism from in-laws and husband, is this grounds for divorce?"

Taking out a loan secretly from husband is not grounds for divorce
Small amounts and loans for marital life are considered

Experts have stated that even if a loan was taken out without the husband's knowledge, it does not constitute grounds for divorce if the amount is not large or if it was used for marital life.

Image unrelated to the article content.
Photo by Getty Images

On the 7th, YTN Radio's "Attorney Jo Inseop's Counseling Room" shared the story of a wife who is contemplating divorce due to mistreatment by her husband and mother-in-law. The wife, Ms. A, grew up in a financially strained household, so after marriage, she sent living expenses to her parents every month. When the amount became unmanageable, she took out a bank loan.

Ms. A did not inform her husband, Mr. B, about the loan, thinking she could quietly repay it on her own. Mr. B was sensitive about money matters and had even attempted to hit Ms. A, leading her to call the police (112) once. Later, after giving birth and taking parental leave, Ms. A's income decreased. Additionally, Mr. B's business faced difficulties, and he failed to provide proper living expenses, forcing Ms. A to take out additional loans.

Ms. A quietly repaid the loans while hiding the fact that she had taken them out, but when Mr. B demanded to see the living expenses bank account, she eventually confessed. Mr. B treated Ms. A as a woman with vanity, and the mother-in-law joined in, demanding credit card statements and personal bank accounts. Feeling humiliated, Ms. A brought up divorce, but Mr. B claimed that she was the at-fault spouse.

Ms. A asked for advice, saying, "How can a loan of 20 to 30 million won for living expenses be considered extravagance and waste? I want to receive alimony from my husband and mother-in-law. The jeonse deposit was borrowed from my mother-in-law, and the insurance was contracted by her, so my husband says he cannot give me a single won," wondering if she could receive a division of property.

Recognition or Non-Recognition of Divorce Grounds Depends on Loan Amount and Usage

Image unrelated to the article content.
Photo by Getty Images

Attorney Kim Miru advised, "If the loan does not lead to the collapse of the family economy and the loan was used not for personal use or gambling but for marital life, it is difficult to consider it grounds for divorce. The husband worsened the conflict by only expressing the mother-in-law's position during disputes between his wife and mother-in-law. Moreover, the husband committed violence. Since the breakdown of the marriage is ultimately due to the husband, I believe the wife can receive a divorce and some alimony."

Attorney Kim added, "'When a spouse or their direct ascendant subjects the other to unfair treatment,' it qualifies as grounds for divorce under civil law," but "to claim damages for illegal acts against the spouse's parents, direct illegal acts by the spouse's parents must be recognized beyond simple unfair treatment." She continued, "Unless the spouse's parents directly assaulted or continuously verbally abused the spouse, it seems impossible to receive alimony from them. Considering that the mother-in-law supported the couple's jeonse deposit and some living expenses, and only interfered due to suspicion of the daughter-in-law's improper spending, it is difficult to recognize a claim for alimony against the mother-in-law."

Regarding the insurance amount, Attorney Kim said, "The surrender value of an insurance contract belongs to the policyholder at the time of cancellation, regardless of who the insured is. If the policyholder is the spouse, it becomes subject to property division." She also stated, "Loans taken before marriage are generally difficult to include in property division, but if pre-marriage loans were used for joint living expenses after marriage or for purchasing real estate acquired during marriage, they become subject to property division."

Meanwhile, property division upon divorce refers to dividing assets accumulated jointly by the couple during the marriage, and it is a right that one party can claim from the other regardless of fault in the divorce. Legally, post-divorce property is determined according to each party's contribution, considering factors such as the duration of the marriage, each spouse's income, and actual economic roles. However, property owned before marriage or unique property acquired through inheritance or gifts during marriage is excluded from division.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.