After the death of her husband,

Should his wife bear the debts he owes during his lifetime?

A special IOU that "if you are unable to maintain the normal living expenses of the family, you can not repay it".

Can it be recognized by law?

recently

The Pingjiang County People's Court heard such a case.

Basic facts of the case

Wan ran an auto repair shop before his death, and purchased auto repair parts from the supplier Hu for a long time, and owed 45000 yuan in arrears. After Wan's death, Hu approached his wife Chen to ask for the arrears, and Chen said that although she recognized that Wan had business dealings with Hu, she did not know the specific amount. After negotiation, the two parties reached an agreement that Chen would return the auto repair parts worth 0 yuan to Hu, and issue a special IOU, which stated: "Chen only needs to pay 0 yuan to Hu." Chen has to do his best to repay the arrears when he is able to repay them, and if it is difficult to maintain normal expenses, Hu is not allowed to obtain the arrears by any means. ”

However, Chen never repaid the loan after that, so Hu sued Chen to the court, demanding that he pay 45000 yuan according to the arrears agreement.

Court decision

　　法院經審理后查明：根據胡某提交的萬某生前簽收的送貨單、對帳單等證據，證明88000元的欠款金額屬實。（陳某退回汽修配件價值2000元）陳某雖辯稱其不清楚具體數額，但未提供反駁證據，且在事後向胡某出具了欠條，對金額予以確認。

In addition, the debts incurred during the operation of the auto repair shop by Wan belonged to the liabilities of business activities during the existence of the marital relationship. According to Article 1064 of the Civil Code, if the debt is used for family life or business income sharing, the spouse shall be jointly and severally liable. Chen did not provide evidence to prove that the debt exceeded the daily needs of the family, so the court found that the debt was a joint debt of the husband and wife.

Although Chen attached the condition that "he cannot maintain his family life and cannot repay it" in the IOU, according to the law, the conditional exemption clause needs to be proved by the claimant (Chen) to prove that the condition has been fulfilled. In the lawsuit, Chen did not submit any evidence to prove that his family was in financial difficulties, so the court found that the clause had not taken effect, and Chen needed to perform the repayment obligation as agreed, and the court ruled that Chen needed to pay Hu 45000 yuan for the goods in accordance with the law.

The judge said

The principle of integrity is the bottom line. Mr. Chen issued an IOU to confirm the debt, indicating that he recognized the repayment responsibility, but he needed to perform the obligation as agreed. Conditionality cannot be used as a "shield" for debt evasion, but must be based on facts and evidence.

The burden of proof is key. The law strictly restricts the application of the exemption clause, and if the debtor claims that it is unable to repay the loan due to financial difficulties, it must provide proof of income, proof of household expenses and other evidence, otherwise it will have to bear the risk of losing the lawsuit.

In debt disputes, the law not only protects the legitimate rights and interests of creditors, but also takes into account the debtor's right to survive, but the realization of rights needs to be supported by facts and evidence. This case reminds the public that economic activities must be strictly honest and rights protection claims must be based on evidence, so that a fair and orderly society under the rule of law can be built.

Legal Links

　　《中華人民共和國民法典》第一千零六十四條第一款：“夫妻雙方共同簽名或者夫妻一方事後追認等共同意思表示所負的債務，以及夫妻一方在婚姻關係存續期間以個人名義為家庭日常生活需要所負的債務，屬於夫妻共同債務。”若債權人主張債務用於共同生產經營，配偶需舉證反駁，否則承擔連帶責任。

Article 158 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China:

"Civil juristic acts may be conditional, except where by their nature they may not be conditional. Civil juristic acts with conditions for taking effect take effect when the conditions are fulfilled. Civil juristic acts with conditions for rescission shall become invalid when the conditions are fulfilled. "For exemptions attached to the terms of the contract (e.g. "inability to repay"), the party claiming the exemption must provide evidence that the conditions have been fulfilled, otherwise it will bear adverse consequences.

Transferred from: Pingjiang County People's Court

Author: Zou Xiuyi Peng Jingjing

Source: Hunan High Court