{"id":59011,"date":"2022-09-12T13:36:36","date_gmt":"2022-09-12T05:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.99.co\/singapore\/insider\/?p=59011"},"modified":"2022-10-14T16:57:54","modified_gmt":"2022-10-14T08:57:54","slug":"former-group-ceo-declared-bankrupt-wife-claims-share-s3-82m-landed-property","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.99.co\/singapore\/insider\/former-group-ceo-declared-bankrupt-wife-claims-share-s3-82m-landed-property\/","title":{"rendered":"Former group CEO declared bankrupt, wife tries to claim share of S$3.82m landed property"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A freehold, landed house in Ang Mo Kio, which used to belong to a former group CEO, has become part of a lawsuit brought about by his wife.<\/p>\n

The asset (or the net proceeds from its sale) is now under a trustee group after the CEO was ousted from his listed firm and declared bankrupt in 2017.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit was filed against the trustees (not her husband), with the wife claiming a beneficial interest of 50% share (ie. net proceeds) of the house.<\/p>\n

After declaring bankruptcy, her husband sold the house for S$3.82m (S$952 psf) in 2017.<\/p>\n

\"Couple<\/p>\n

The property was completed in 2007 and is part of a 122-unit landed home estate. The house, with a land area of 4,011 sqft, was bought for S$3.1m (S$773 psf) in mid-2011.<\/p>\n

It underwent substantial renovations between 2011 and 2012, which the husband financed with a S$604k loan.<\/p>\n

Initially, the husband and his wife, a non-Singaporean at the time, had intended to jointly own the house as a couple.<\/p>\n

However, after transferring the initial 5% (S$155k) together, the couple’s solicitor advised that the wife is ineligible, as foreigners cannot\u00a0purchase landed property<\/a> in Singapore unless under specific approval guidelines.<\/p>\n

So the property was purchased in the husband’s sole name.<\/p>\n

After his wife became a Singaporean citizen in December 2011, the couple and their children moved into the house in 2012. Even then, the title deed for the house remained under the husband’s name.<\/p>\n

In 2017, after her husband was declared bankrupt and sold the property, the wife tried to claim for a beneficial interest in 50% of the sold property and net proceeds.<\/p>\n

However, the trustees rejected her, claiming her husband was the sole legal owner.<\/p>\n

In 2019, the wife brought court action against the trustees.<\/p>\n

\"9<\/p>\n

Wife’s arguments<\/h2>\n

The wife’s arguments against the trustees include common intention, where the wife and her husband had jointly decided to own the property.<\/p>\n

Even though her husband bought the property in his sole name, it stands to reason that he would also hold it in trust for his wife – usually termed as a “common intention constructive trust”.<\/p>\n

Her arguments also included inferred common intention, through evidence like:<\/p>\n