Court denies wife pension share due to extramarital affair and child outside marriage. The North Gauteng High in Pretoria has granted a decree of divorce while ordering a wife toforfeit any claim to her husband’s pension benefitsafter finding that her conduct during the marriage amounted to substantial misconduct. The high court ruled that the wife would be unduly benefited if she were allowed to share in the husband’s pension fund, valued at approximately R2.3 million.
The couple, who were married in community of property in January 2011, had lived apart since 2020. Although both parties acknowledged that their marriage had irretrievably broken down and agreed to an equal division of the joint estate, the husband sought to exclude his pension from the settlement, citing his wife’s extramarital affair and the birth of a child with another man. The court heard that the wife, who was unemployed throughout the marriage, became romantically involved with one of the husband’s friends while they were still living together.In an emotional response to the shocking betrayal, he chased her away from their home.
In an emotional response to the shocking betrayal, he chased her away from their home. A few years later, he saw a post of a baby shower on Facebook, prompting the realisation that his wife had given birth to a third child in December 2023. Notably, the wife chose not to testify, leading the court to rely heavily on the husband’s account of events.The court papers did not mention who was the father of the child.
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Notably, the wife chose not to testify, leading the court to rely heavily on the husband’s account of events. During cross examination, the husband was questioned about a property belonging to the joint estate which he sold for R65,000 in December 2020, and the title deed recorded that he was unmarried. He explained that he sold the property to his sister to cover medical expenses after falling seriously ill,dismissing allegations thathe misrepresented his marital status to exclude the wife.In any event, he added, the wife was in another relationship at that time.
In any event, he added, the wife was in another relationship at that time. Judge Noluntu Nelisa Bam accepted his explanation and said it was clear that the wife no longer cared as she was minding her own business with another man.
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