Photo is unrelated to this article. [123RF]
Photo is unrelated to this article. [123RF]

A man whose wife walked out on him and their 8-month-old baby during what was effectively still their honeymoon period has found himself on the receiving end of a divorce lawsuit filed by the wife herself.

According to a case shared Tuesday on YTN Radio's legal advice program "Jo In-seop Attorney's Counseling Office," a man identified only as A met his wife through an office romance. She became pregnant three months into the relationship, and the couple married quickly. A used his own savings and financial help from his parents to secure an apartment for the newlywed home. The baby was born without complications, and the couple completed their marriage registration.

But A and his wife turned out to be deeply incompatible in their daily lives.

"From our daily routines to sleep schedules and tidiness, there was not a single thing we agreed on," A said. "Even unwinding with a game for a bit after work bothered her. At first I tried to make it work, but the conflict only deepened."

He said that one day his wife unleashed a torrent of verbal abuse at him and walked out. "The baby was only 8 months old at the time," he said. "She left that tiny infant behind and never once reached out — she didn't even ask how the child was doing."

Then, not long after, A said something shocking happened: his wife was the one who filed for divorce.

"She even submitted a request to be designated as the child's custodian," he said. He added that he wanted to know whether a marriage that lasted only about six months in practice required him to divide his assets with her, and whether he could claim child support from her — both for the period she had been absent and going forward — if he continued raising the child himself.

Wife bears fault for breakdown of marriage

Attorney Kim Su-jin of Shinsegae Law, who reviewed the case, said the apartment A acquired before the marriage using his own savings and his parents' support would in principle be treated as his separate property. "Assets subject to division are jointly formed through both parties' contributions during the marriage," she said. "Separate property acquired before the marriage is in principle excluded from division."

She added, however, that the apartment could exceptionally be included in the division if the wife could show she contributed to its upkeep and maintenance during the marriage. "But given that the marriage lasted only six months and the other party abandoned the home and has been living separately, it would be difficult to recognize any meaningful contribution on her part," Kim said.

On the question of custody, Kim said the child's welfare is the paramount consideration when designating a custodial parent at divorce. "The circumstances currently favor the husband: he has been directly raising the child, while the other party unilaterally walked out on an 8-month-old and abandoned her parental responsibilities," she said. "The wife also bears fault for the breakdown of the marriage through severe verbal abuse and desertion."

On child support during the divorce proceedings, Kim said A could first file for a preliminary disposition. "If a divorce case is pending, a family court may, when it finds special necessity for resolving the matter, issue a disposition on its own authority or upon a party's application — including orders regarding the care and upbringing of those involved," she said. "Through this preliminary disposition mechanism, you can obtain a ruling requiring the other party to pay a set amount of child support on a temporary basis until the final divorce judgment is rendered."


yul@heraldcorp.com