Lawyer Ou Meixin was interviewed by Southern Metropolis Daily on revocable marriage.
After the promulgation of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, substantial changes have taken place in the Marriage and Family Part. How many lesser-known legal provisions in the new marriage and family relationship are you unfamiliar with?
Ms. Ou Meixin, a lawyer at Guangdong Wumei Law Firm who has long specialized in marriage and family legal services, was interviewed by Southern Metropolis Daily regarding the circumstances of revocable marriage under the Civil Code. The full interview content is as follows:
Recently, a ruling issued by the Higher People’s Court of Jiangsu Province drew public attention: a daughter was coerced by her mother into marrying a blind date against her will.
Under verbal coercion from her mother, Ms. Zhou registered her marriage with Mr. Fu. The two had no emotional bond and never shared marital life. Thereafter, Ms. Zhou filed a lawsuit with the people’s court, requesting to revoke her marriage with Mr. Fu.
Circumstances under Which a Marriage May Be Revoked
The Civil Code, which came into force in 2021, explicitly stipulates two circumstances for revocable marriage:
Where a marriage is concluded under coercion, the coerced party may request the people’s court to revoke the marriage;
Where one party suffers from a serious illness and fails to make truthful disclosure prior to marriage registration, the other party may petition the people’s court for marriage revocation.
Court Revokes Marriage after Mother Forces Daughter into Marriage by Threatening Suicide
According to the release from the Higher People’s Court of Jiangsu Province, Ms. Zhou was introduced to Mr. Fu by her mother. Given Mr. Fu’s favorable family background and distant kinship between the two families, Ms. Zhou’s mother strongly wished the two to get married.
After Ms. Zhou refused to date Mr. Fu, her mother forcibly took her back home from her workplace and coerced her into marriage with threats, such as driving her out of the family home or committing suicide if she refused to marry.
Fearing a breakdown of family relations and worrying about her mother’s extreme conduct, Ms. Zhou had no choice but to register the marriage with Mr. Fu. After marriage, the couple had no affection and never lived as spouses. Nevertheless, Ms. Zhou’s mother still forbade her from getting divorced, leading to frequent quarrels and physical conflicts between mother and daughter. Eventually, Ms. Zhou instituted court proceedings to revoke her marriage with Mr. Fu.
The court held that despite Ms. Zhou’s repeated clear refusal to date and marry Mr. Fu, her mother resorted to threats of expulsion and suicide, compelling Ms. Zhou to enter into the marriage against her free will.
The couple never had conjugal relations or established marital affection after marriage. The mother continued to obstruct Ms. Zhou’s personal will, resulting in constant disputes and physical clashes. Her mother’s conduct constituted illegal interference with Ms. Zhou’s freedom of marriage and amounted to legal coercion.
As Ms. Zhou’s application for marriage revocation complied with legal provisions, the court rendered a judgment to revoke the marriage between the plaintiff Ms. Zhou and the defendant Mr. Fu.
Marriage Revocation Also Applicable to Concealment of Serious Pre-marital Illness
Article 1046 of the Civil Code stipulates that marriage shall be based on the full voluntary consent of both man and woman. Coercion by one party against the other, as well as interference by any organization or individual, are prohibited.
This provision prohibits not only unilateral coercion between prospective spouses but also interference with marital autonomy by external organizations, family members or any third party.
Ms. Ou Meixin, Director of the Marriage and Family Law Research Association of Guangdong Law Society and Lawyer at Guangdong Wumei Law Firm, explained that the Civil Code defines two categories of revocable marriage:
First, marriage registered under coercion from the other party or a third party;
Second, where one party conceals a serious illness before marriage registration, the other party may apply for revocation upon discovering the concealment after marriage.
"Coercion takes various forms, including physical violence, threats to damage one’s reputation or honor, and intimidation," Ms. Ou analyzed.
As for the definition of serious illness, the law has not issued explicit enumerative provisions. In judicial practice, it generally covers severe hereditary diseases, infectious diseases, severe mental illnesses, and reproductive system disorders that affect fertility.
As previously reported by Southern Metropolis Daily, the Haidian District People’s Court of Beijing heard a case in which a man concealed sexual dysfunction before marriage, and his wife filed a lawsuit for marriage revocation. The court ruled that erectile dysfunction falls under sexual dysfunction and qualifies as a serious illness requiring pre-marital disclosure. The marriage was revoked, and the man was ordered to pay 50,000 yuan as compensation for mental damage to the woman.
In another case published by the Changsha Intermediate People’s Court, Zhang San married Xiaoli through an introduction. After marriage, he discovered Xiaoli had suffered from mental illness prior to registration. The court held that her mental illness was sufficient to affect Zhang San’s marital decision and normal conjugal life, thus falling within the scope of serious illnesses under the Civil Code, and ruled to revoke the marriage.
Time Limit for Marriage Revocation Application; Revoked Marriage Deemed Unmarried
Can an application for marriage revocation be filed at any time once the statutory circumstances arise?
"Applications for marriage revocation are subject to statutory time limits and will not be upheld by the court if filed beyond the period," Ms. Ou Meixin noted.
- For a marriage concluded under coercion: the application shall be filed within one year from the date the coercive conduct ceases; if the party’s personal freedom is restrained, the one-year period starts from the date of regaining personal liberty.
- For marriage involving concealed serious illness: the application shall be submitted within one year from the date the applicant knows or ought to know the factual concealment.
Ms. Ou reminded that applicants must strictly observe the time limit. Those who find their marriage qualifies for revocation and intend to terminate the marital relationship are advised to file an application with the court in a timely manner.
In addition, the direct legal consequence of marriage revocation is the termination of marital rights and obligations between both parties. The marital status shall be recorded as unmarried, rather than divorced or widowed.
"A person whose marriage is revoked will be regarded as marrying for the first time if they remarry in the future," Ms. Ou told a reporter from Southern Metropolis Daily.
Since a revoked marriage is deemed non-existent ab initio, property acquired during cohabitation may be settled by mutual agreement; if no agreement is reached, the court shall make a judgment in favor of the innocent party.
Article 1054 of the Civil Code further stipulates that the innocent party shall have the right to claim damages when a marriage is revoked. Namely, the coerced or deceived party may claim compensation from the other party if they bear no fault in the marriage.