Insights

Provisions of Ningbo on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Cases Involving Bifrite Disputes

Ningbo Author：LuXu WANG

After the bride price was given, the marriage did not take place, or the divorce took place shortly after registration. Whether and how much the money should be refunded has long been the most acute point of contention in the marriage property disputes in Ningbo and its surrounding areas. The special regulations of the Supreme People's Court, which came into effect on February 1, 2024, have for the first time written three types of problems: "how to determine the scope of betrothal gifts", "how to live together without registration" and "how to live together without registration". Written rules. The provisions are presented in full below, and then the applicable caliber of practice is disassembled item by item.

Full text of 1. provisions

in order to correctly try cases involving bride price disputes, these provisions are formulated in accordance with the the People's Republic of China Civil Code, the the People's Republic of China Civil procedure Law and other legal provisions, combined with trial practice.

Articles 1 to 2: Scope of application and prohibition of soliciting property through marriage

article 1 These Provisions shall apply to disputes arising from the demand for the return of the bride price after the payment of the bride price for the purpose of marriage in accordance with custom.

Article 2 It is prohibited to solicit property through marriage. If one party solicits property through marriage in the name of bride price, and the other party requests its return, the people's court shall support it.

Article 3: Determination of the scope of the bride price

article 3 In the trial of disputes involving betrothal gifts, the people's court may determine the scope of betrothal gifts based on the purpose of one party's payment of property, taking into account the local customs of both parties, the time and method of payment, the value of the property, the payer and the recipient and other facts. Property paid under the following circumstances does not belong to bride price: (1) gifts and gifts of little value paid by one party at special commemorative points such as festivals and birthdays; daily consumption expenses of the (II) party to express or promote feelings; (III) other property of little value.

Article 4: Subject of Proceedings

article 4 In a property dispute over a marriage contract, one of the parties to the marriage contract and the parents who actually paid the bride price may act as co-plaintiffs; the other party to the marriage contract and the parents who actually received the bride price may act as co-defendants. In a divorce dispute, if one party files a claim for the return of the bride price, the parties are still the husband and wife.

Article 5: Return Rules for Registered Marriage and Living Together

article 5 If both parties have registered for marriage and live together, and one party requests the return of the bride price paid in accordance with custom at the time of divorce, the people's court generally does not support it. However, if the time of living together is short and the amount of the bride price is too high, the people's court may, according to the actual use of the bride price and the dowry, comprehensively consider the amount of the bride price, the situation of living together and gestation, the fault of both parties and other facts, and combine with local customs to determine whether to return it and the specific proportion of the return. When the people's court determines whether the amount of the betrothal gift is too high, it shall comprehensively consider such factors as the per capita disposable income of the residents in the place where the betrothal gift is paid, the economic situation of the payer's family and local customs.

Article 6: Return Rules for Unregistered but Living Together

article 6 If the two parties have not registered their marriage but have lived together, and one party requests the return of the dowry paid in accordance with customs, the people's court shall, on the basis of the actual use of the dowry and the dowry, comprehensively consider the facts of living together and gestation, the fault of both parties, and in combination with local customs, determine whether to return and the specific proportion of return.

Article 7: Implementation time and retroactivity

article 7 These Provisions shall come into force as of February 1, 2024. After the implementation of these Provisions, the People's Court has not yet concluded cases of first and second instance of the application of these provisions. These Provisions shall not apply to cases in which the trial has been final before the implementation of these Provisions, and the parties apply for retrial or decide to retrial in accordance with the trial supervision procedures after the implementation of these Provisions.

Interpretation of 2. Application Points

what money is not a bride price

article 3 framed the scope of the bride price with the five elements of "purpose-custom-time and manner-value-subject" and explicitly excluded three types of expenditure. The most common dispute in practice is the transfer during love: ideographic small transfers such as 520 yuan and 1,314 yuan, as well as daily consumption expenses for meals, travel and clothes, are usually not recognized as bride price. However, large sums of money and "three gold" and other valuable property paid by the man and his parents in one lump sum at specific nodes such as engagement ceremony and ceremony are likely to fall into the scope of bride price. The core of the judgment is not the size of the amount itself, but whether the payment is for the purpose of the marriage.

How to Measure "Short Time Together" and "Too High Amount"

article 5 sets up a structure of "principle non-return + exception can be returned". Exceptions must meet both the conditions of "short living time together" and "excessive amount of bride price. For the measurement of "excessive", the provisions give three objective references: the per capita disposable income of the residents in the place where the payer is located, the economic situation of the payer's family, and local customs. This means that it is also 200,000 yuan. In regions with different levels of per capita disposable income, the conclusion may be the opposite. The economic level of Ningbo and its surrounding areas is relatively high, and the determination of "excessive" in practice is usually combined with local marriage customs and the actual debt situation of the family.

The hedging effect of dowry is often overlooked

articles 5 and 6 both include "the actual use of the bride price and the situation of the dowry" as facts that must be taken into account. If the bride price has been used to purchase household appliances, furniture, decoration of the wedding room used by both parties, or if the woman has married property of equivalent value, the return ratio will be significantly reduced or even zero. Therefore, when the receiving party is responding to the lawsuit, it is often more effective to prove the whereabouts of the bride price together with the dowry list than to simply deny receipt.

The situation of gestation and the fault of both parties

whether there is a common birth, whether there is a miscarriage or damage to the woman's body caused by childbirth, and the fault attribution of the dissolution of the marriage or the breakdown of the marriage are all factors in determining the proportion of return. If there is a fact of childbirth, the return ratio is usually significantly reduced; if the payer has a major fault such as domestic violence or infidelity, it will also affect the outcome of the discretion.

Who can sue, who

article 4 solves the subject problem that has plagued practice for a long time. The bride price is usually actually funded by the man's parents and actually received by the woman's parents. In the past, separate prosecutions in the name of the children often resulted in enforcement obstacles that "the money is not in the hands of the defendant. Now the parents who actually pay can act as co-plaintiffs and the parents who actually receive them can act as co-defendants, and the flow of funds should be sorted out before suing, and the real payers should be included in the parties.

3. case proof

according to the similar judgment rules reflected in the public judgment documents in Zhejiang Province, there are three relatively stable tendencies in the marriage contract property disputes after the implementation of the regulations: first, if the marriage registration is not handled but the living time is less than one year, the court usually orders the return according to a certain proportion, and takes whether the bride price is used for living together and whether there is dowry hedging as the main proportional adjustment factors, for those who have registered for marriage and have lived together for more than two years, the request for return is generally not supported unless there is a case of asking for property through marriage. Third, it has become normal for daily transfers and holiday gifts during love to be excluded from the scope of bride price. The payer's claim for full return of all transfers is usually only partially supported. The treatment caliber of similar cases in Ningbo area is basically the same.

4. Risk Alert

  • the bride price payment lacks written documents, only cash delivery, after-the-fact return claim is extremely difficult to establish, the payment should be as far as possible through bank transfer and note the purpose.
  • The love of all transfers together to sue for return, do not distinguish between bride price and daily consumption expenses, easy to lead to most of the claims rejected and additional legal costs.
  • If the recipient transfers the bride price quickly or uses it for personal consumption without being able to explain where it is going, it will be adversely evaluated in terms of the return rate.
  • Parents who sue only one party to the marriage contract and omit the actual collection may have no property to enforce after winning the case.
  • The old cases that have been finally tried do not apply to this provision, and the court will not support the application for retrial on the grounds of the new regulations.

5. FAQ

the bride price was given but there was no license or cohabitation. Can you get it back in full?

This situation does not fall within the scope of the adjustment of articles 5 and 6. According to the general principle of marital property disputes, the dowry paid for the purpose of entering into marriage is lost due to the purpose of marriage, and the recipient shall generally return it, usually in a higher proportion. However, the daily consumption expenses and small commemorative gifts during the love period are not included in the return.

After receiving the license and living together for half a year, the bride price will be refunded?

In the case of "living together for a short time" under Article 5, whether the bride price is returned depends on whether the amount of the bride price is too high. The court will determine whether to return the bride price and the specific proportion in the light of the actual use of the bride price, the situation of dowry, the presence or absence of childbirth, the fault of both parties and the per capita disposable income of local residents.

Three gold, wedding banquet money is not a bride price?

"Three gold" and other valuables paid at specific points such as engagement, ceremony, etc., are usually recognized as gifts.

The bride price is given by the parents. Who should be the plaintiff when suing?

Under article 4, one of the parties to the marriage contract and the parents who actually paid the bride price may act as co-plaintiffs, and the other party to the marriage contract and the parents who actually received the bride price may act as co-defendants. It is suggested that the parties should be determined according to the actual flow of funds to avoid the failure of the implementation stage.

Practical Experience of 6. Lawyers

whether and how much the bride price should be refunded is the most acute point of contention in the marriage contract property dispute. From the experience of handling cases, we should first distinguish what kind of situation we are dealing with, because the rules are not the same: those who have obtained the license and live together or ask for return at the time of divorce are generally not supported, but those who live together for a short time and the amount of bride price is obviously too high will be combined with the actual use of bride price, dowry, common life and gestation, the faults of both parties and local customs to determine whether to return and return proportion; for those who have not registered but have lived together, it depends on the time of living together and the use of the bride price. Only by matching the situation with the rules can we know whether there is a play or how big it is.

The evidence is prepared around two cores: one is "whether the bride price is given" and the other is "where did the money go and whether they live together". The transfer voucher, the time and method of payment, the evidence of local customs, whether the recipient is himself or his parents, etc. should be clarified. Gifts of little value given on festivals and birthdays and daily consumption to promote feelings do not belong to bride price, so don't mix in. If the money has been used for living together, buying dowries or being consumed, the return rate will be lowered accordingly, so evidence of actual use by both parties is equally critical. If the return is involved, the subject of litigation and jurisdiction should also be clearly confirmed in advance.

In negotiation and pit avoidance, the return of bride price often has a strong emotional and face factor, and it is easy to freeze up. The "part confirmed as bride price" and "part not as bride price" can be discussed separately, and then the return ratio and payment method can be discussed. The payer is most concerned about whether the money can be taken back. The receiver often cares about the reputation and whether it is accused of "cheating marriage", and designs the plan of returning it in stages or ending it in one lump sum. Avoiding the pit tip: don't draw a conclusion just by "give it up and retire", and don't give up the idea of living together, gestation and other facts in order to settle it as soon as possible-these details directly affect how much you can retire in the end.

Most of the time, the outcome of disputes involving betrothal gifts does not depend on oral promises, but on three things: whether the payment certificate is clear, whether the whereabouts of betrothal gifts can be checked, and whether the parties are listed completely. The recipient shall keep a record of the transfer and indicate the purpose of the transfer at the time of payment, the recipient shall compile a list of the expenses and dowry spent on the common life of the bride price when responding to the lawsuit, and both parties shall clarify the true flow of funds before the lawsuit and include the parents who actually received the payment in the lawsuit.