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A high-profile divorce case in eastern China has ignited heated debates online after a husband, caught cheating, claimed half of his late mother-in-law’s property. The incident, which unfolded in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, has drawn attention to legal loopholes and societal concerns surrounding marriage and inheritance laws.
The drama began earlier this year when the wife, seeking to cheer up her grieving mother, took her for a walk. Three years earlier, her father had passed away from an illness, leaving her mother in fragile health. During their outing, the pair unexpectedly encountered the woman’s husband, hand in hand with another woman.
Overwhelmed with anger and betrayal, the wife confronted her husband, leading to a heated argument in public. As the mother tried to mediate, she suffered a fatal heart attack and died at the scene.
Grieving the sudden loss, the wife managed her mother’s funeral arrangements before initiating divorce proceedings three months later. While the husband agreed to the divorce, he made a controversial demand: an equal division of the two houses inherited from her mother.
Stunned by the audacity of his claim, the wife retorted, “How can you demand a share of my parents’ property?” Refusing to concede, the couple took the matter to court.
According to China’s Civil Code, assets inherited during a marriage are considered joint marital property. Consequently, the court ruled that the husband was entitled to half of the inherited houses.
Ye Shijuan, an official from the Zhejiang Testament Database, explained that the outcome might have been different if the mother-in-law had left a will explicitly stating that the properties were for her daughter alone. Without such a document, the husband’s claim was legally valid.
This ruling has sparked outrage on social media. On Douyin, one user expressed disbelief: “The mother died because of him, and now he’s claiming her property? This is appalling!” Another lamented, “This case will discourage people from marrying, even though the verdict is legally sound.”
