Facts
The wife, born in 1945, and the husband, born in 1940, are both childless. After nearly ten years of cohabitation, they married on February 1, 1996; they have been living separately since February 2000. In its divorce judgment of November 16, 2007, the District Court of Lucerne-City set post-marital maintenance for the wife at CHF 2,100 per month from the date the judgment became legally binding until February 2009 (reaching AHV retirement age). The wife subsequently demanded unlimited post-marital maintenance of CHF 3,900, which the Higher Court rejected. The wife appealed against this judgment, seeking post-marital maintenance of CHF 2,100 per month for four years from March 2008.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court dismisses the appeal, insofar as it is admissible. It states that the cohabitation, which preceded the marital cohabitation for almost ten years, was rightly disregarded by the cantonal instances. The legislator had consciously decided against considering cohabitation in the revision of divorce law, as it does not establish a legally protected position of trust. Only in exceptional cases, where the cohabitation has significantly shaped the partners' lives and responsibility for it was assumed with the marriage, can it be taken…