Wife locked husband out of his own home while renting out her flat: Here's what the court decided
Usually, when a marriage breaks down and the question of property ownership arises, it can become a sore point that drags out the divorce process. In a recent legal case, a disagreement over who gets to keep living in the home escalated the matter, especially when one spouse is the sole owner of the property in question.The case brought to the Family Justice Courts involved a wife who changed the locks on her husband's property, rented out her own HDB flat, and then asked the courts to let her and her two daughters stay in his home until their divorce proceedings were over.Ultimately, in a judgment dated 19 Oct 2026, Justice Teh Hwee dismissed the wife's appeal, finding that she was not asking for a reasonable period to move out, but effectively seeking to remain in the property indefinitely.It's an eye-catching case that prompts us to consider the wider issue of property ownership in the midst of a divorce, and just how much right a spouse has to remain in a home that doesn't legally belong to them.