Reg Rumney
Like decrepit old age, the end of a marriage through death or divorce is painful to contemplate, but in the long run it could be more painful not to contemplate it.
That is where a booklet such as Options at Marriage, recently published by insurance giant Old Mutual, comes in.
The booklet spells out in simple terms the pros and cons of each of the three options available to those about to marry: in community of property; with the accrual system; or out of community of property without the accrual system.
For instance, Options at Marriage summarises the advantages of the accrual system as:
* Spouses share gains made during the marriage, benefiting the economically weaker spouse.
* Spouses do not share assets acquired before the marriage. Thus the accrual system appeals to people already wealthy at the time of marriage.
* During the marriage each spouse runs his or her estate freely. There is no complicated joint or equal
* Spouses are not liable for each other’s debts. All they share is their assets. If one spouse becomes insolvent the other is protected from the creditors.
Disadvantages are said to be:
* The economically stronger spouse has to share the profits made during the marriage.
* The spouses have to enter into an ante-nuptial contract for the accrual system to apply. (Such a contract can exclude the accrual system).
* The calculation of accrual at the end of the marriage is
Too late! you cry. But even if you are already married, the booklet points out, you don’t have to live with the wrong
The authors of the booklet point out that while the general rule is that spouses cannot change the system under which they were married, the couple can jointly apply to court for permission to change their marital system.
“The court must be satisfied that there are good reasons for the change and that no creditors will be prejudiced.”
The booklet remarks that changing the marital system informally — for example, by the two spouses entering into a private contract — is not on. “In Honey v Honey, this is what the parties tried to do. The court rejected their attempt and stuck to the ante-nuptial contract.”
The booklet has a section on maintenance of spouses during and after the marriage, and the maintenance of children, as well as on customary unions and Hindu and Muslim marriages.
Helpfully, the booklet ends with a simple legal definition section explaining legal jargon.
Though the booklet could be equally helpful to both sexes, Old Mutal marketing manager Clair Rutgers says that Options at Marriage is the first in a series of booklets aimed at empowering women with information about various financial and legal issues that affect them.
The project results from a study commissioned by Old Mutual last year which found women wanted more information about financial planning.