Facts
X. and Y. married in 1995 and remained childless. In 2004, they signed a divorce convention pursuant to Art. 111 of the Swiss Civil Code (ZGB), in which they regulated the sale of their joint property and the distribution of the proceeds. However, on October 6, 2004, X. revoked her consent to the convention, but maintained her request for divorce. The High Court of the Canton of Bern then declared the parties as having settled their property rights.
X. filed a civil law appeal with the Federal Supreme Court and requested the annulment of the High Court's judgment on the property rights issue and the remission of the case for the settlement of the property rights.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court upheld the appeal. It stated that spouses in a divorce by mutual consent can revoke the divorce convention up until the final judicial hearing, as this is the only way to preserve the meaning of the statutory reflection period under Art. 111 para. 2 ZGB.
Even after the sale of the marital property, X. could revoke her consent to the convention, as the parties remain subject to the participation in acquired property regime until the dissolution of the matrimonial property regime. The sale of…