Facts
Parties: The husband (appellant) and the wife (respondent).
Facts:
- The parties married in 2005 and have a common son. The wife is from Russia and had a successful career in the tourism industry before the marriage.
- After four years in China, the family returned to Switzerland, where the wife was employed to a lesser extent.
- After eleven years of marriage, the parties separated. The District Court of Lucerne regulated maintenance and custody of the child.
- The Cantonal Court of Lucerne confirmed the life-shaping marriage and set post-marital maintenance until the original AHV retirement age of the wife.
Main issue: The amount and duration of post-marital maintenance, in particular the question of whether the marriage is to be considered life-shaping and whether maintenance should continue beyond the AHV retirement age of the husband.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court first examines the admissibility of the appeal and finds that the appeal in civil matters is open, as the value in dispute exceeds CHF 30,000.--.
In legal terms, the husband disputes the existence of a life-shaping marriage. The Cantonal Court classified the marriage as life-shaping, as the wife was only employed to a minor extent during the marriage and primarily took care of the household and the upbringing of the common child. The Federal Supreme Court confirms this assessment and finds that the wife, due to the marital division of tasks, can no longer resume her pre-marital professional position.
With regard to the duration of post-marital maintenance, the Federal Supreme Court states that the maintenance obligation ends at the latest when the obligated party reaches AHV retirement age. The Cantonal Court set maintenance until the original AHV retirement age of the…