What kinds of affairs lead to divorce?

 What kind of complaint should one files?


陳孟暄律師於正德基金會演講

Many people came to us to asked about what types of affairs that could possibly lead to divorce?

They said that their spouse seems to have an affair.
But they can’t prove if their spouse had sex with someone else or not.

Is it possible to still file a complaint?

The answer is…

It depends.

It depends on:

外遇提告

In practical terms, even if there is no evidence that one’s spouse had sex with anyone else,
but as long as one can prove that the spouse has behaved ‘beyond normal social boundaries’ with other people, one can still file a complaint.

They can file a complaint for ‘divorce’ or a complaint for ‘damage of spousal rights’, or both of them.

超越正常社交分際

But two situations often occur:

A. Not enough evidence:

Generally speaking, affairs occur in very secretive circumstances.
What we often heard was ‘I suspect that my spouse is having an affair’.
But in most cases, they didn’t have any solid evidence to prove so.

B. The obtaining of evidence is considered illegal:

If the evidence was obtained by means of:

1. Violence or Intimidation

2. Continuous long-term monitoring

3. Other illegal means similar to above

The evidence may not be admitted in court because it is considered illegal.

外遇證據不足或取得違法

But as long as one have evidence proving that one’s spouse has interacted with other people ‘beyond ordinary friendship’,

for example:

1. Unusually frequent interaction or chat

2. Frequently travel together or attend dinner parties together alone

3. Intimate physical contacts, such as hooking arms, holding hands, cuddling with each other, kissing

4. Flirting messages or cards

5. Spending a long time alone in a room or in a non-public space

It will be highly possible for the court to recognize that one’s spouse has an affair and agree to one’s claim.

外遇補強證據

But it is hard to judge whether the means to obtain such evidence are illegal or not,
thus, we strongly recommend that one should find a lawyer as soon as possible when one suspects or discovers that his or her spouse is having an affair,
to avoid the possibility of accidentally breaking the law and successfully claiming legal rights!