Facts
In this case, the FC has partially upheld the appeal of Mr. St. against the divorce judgment of the Higher Court of Appenzell Ausserrhoden concerning the maintenance allowance granted to the wife. The FC has annulled the decision on the maintenance allowance and referred the case back to the previous instance for further investigation and a new decision, on the grounds that the Higher Court had not sufficiently established the conditions of need of the wife within the meaning of Art. 152 CC. In the new proceedings, the Higher Court of Appenzell Ausserrhoden based the maintenance allowance on Art. 151 CC and set the annuity at CHF 600 per month, limited to the AHV age of the husband. The husband appealed against this decision again, which was partially upheld by the FC. The FC ordered the husband to pay a monthly maintenance allowance of CHF 200 to his wife until her AHV age, based on Art. 152 CC.Considerations
The FC recalls that, according to Art. 66 para. 1 FJA, the cantonal instance to which a case is referred by the FC must be based on the legal assessment that led to the referral. The framework of the new decision is thus delimited by the FC's referral decision, and the cantonal instance may neither extend the point in dispute nor base it on a new legal basis. In the present…