Court Rules on Marriage End Date, Dividing Assets Based on March 2025 Breakup
A family court judge in Israel has ruled that a couple's marriage effectively ended on March 4, 2025, the date the husband filed for divorce proceedings. The decision by Judge Hila Ohayon Gliksman resolves a five-month dispute between the couple, married in 2006 and parents to four children, over when their shared assets should be divided.
The wife had argued the marriage concluded on August 2, 2025, after a final reconciliation attempt, citing continued marital counseling and even affectionate messages from her husband in May 2025. She claimed the marriage ended upon her return from Paris on February 28, 2025, stating her husband had been in "complete disconnect" since then. However, the court found her actions, including withdrawing approximately 200,000 shekels from joint social benefits and transferring them to her mother in April 2025 without her husband's knowledge, indicated she believed the marriage was over.
The court also noted the husband's actions, such as proposing a draft divorce agreement in May 2025 that addressed only asset division and alimony, and celebrating holidays separately with the children, pointed to a final separation. While the husband continued to pay household expenses, the judge deemed this responsible behavior towards the children rather than a continuation of the marital partnership.
The wife's shifting accounts of the separation date, initially suggesting March 2025, then February 2026, and finally August 2025, also influenced the court's decision. The ruling establishes March 4, 2025, as the critical date for asset division under Israel's Spouses' Property Relations Law, meaning all assets accumulated until that point will be shared, while subsequent acquisitions belong solely to the individual who earned them.
The next step involves appointing an expert to assess the value of the couple's assets, including businesses and goodwill, as of the determined separation date. This date is crucial because the husband, who was the sole breadwinner and owned businesses, benefits from an earlier division, while the wife stands to gain more from a later date.
