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Courts to protect spouses from fake, illegal debt / Global Times
On Tuesday, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) amended a controversial article in a judicial interpretation of the marriage law that specified that after a divorce, both husband and wife are responsible for paying off any debts incurred by either of them while they were married. Divorcees who found themselves financially crippled because of their spousal debt have been calling for a change to the law for some time. According to a statement (in Chinese) released on the website of SPC, under the new article, “people’s courts shall not uphold one’s claim on debt if he or she colludes with either spouse to fake a debt” and “if one side of a couple incurs debts for illegal use, such as gambling or taking drugs, the people’s court shall not uphold the claim as well.” Some online commenters have called the amendment a “positive change,” but many are unsatisfied: “Two fundamental questions remain unanswered. First, who should be responsible for individual debts incurred during a marriage that is not for family use or legal investments? Second, whose burden is it to prove whether or not borrowed money is used for illegal activities?” one person noted (in Chinese).
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