Facts
The case concerns a man (A.A.) who had been married to C. since 1960, but in 1986 entered into a second marriage with B.A. in Italy. From 2008, there was divorce proceedings pending between A.A. and B.A. in Switzerland, in which A.A. was obliged to pay monthly maintenance of CHF 16,700 to B.A.
In 2015, the Tribunale Ordinario di Roma in Italy declared the marriage between A.A. and B.A. null and void. The District Court of Arbon in Switzerland recognized this judgment and determined that the provisional measures would lapse with the final resolution of the divorce proceedings (ex nunc).
A.A. appealed against this decision and demanded that he not owe any maintenance payments to B.A. and that the provisional measures should lapse retroactively (ex tunc).
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court dismissed the appeal. It stated that while the Italian judgment of annulment of marriage was recognized in Switzerland, it did not address the maintenance obligation between the parties during the annulment proceedings. Therefore, it has no effect in this regard.
Despite the ex tunc effect of the annulment of the marriage, the spousal maintenance obligation lapses only ex nunc, as under both Swiss and Italian law, the invalid marriage has the effects of a valid marriage until the declaration of…