My husband gave me a wedding present of half of the apartment which his parents purchased for him during his youth. A short time ago I decided to divorce and when I told my husband of my plans he demanded I give back my half of the apartment. He explained that he gave me half of the apartment on condition that we marry and keep the family together. Can he deprive me of my rights to half of the apartment this way ?
By: דיאנה שאלתיאל•Published on: 12 May, 2022No ! In principle, a marital crisis cannot be used to turn the clock back and cancel a present given during the marriage, except in very specific circumstances where the gift was conditioned at the time .
The Supreme Court has summarized the situation regarding cancelling ‘conditional’ gifts: ‘ Someone who wishes to condition a gift with a cessation condition, or someone who wishes to put an obligation alongside the gift which he gives, must do this in a clear and identifiable way. In the absence of evidence, there is no room to claim the existence of a condition and no condition can be created that does not derive from a principle at the time the gift was made. The assumption is that a present is final and watertight when made and the fact that hopes for the future fade, is not, by itself grounds for showing that the gift is cancelled.’