Legal regime regarding the property of spouses in Lithuania

ECOVIS Miškinis, Kvainauskas ir partneriai advokatų kontora

The legal regime regarding the property of spouses may be defined in Lithuania in two ways by the law: by the civil code, or by the marriage contract. In case there is no marriage contract between the spouses, the law defines the legal regime of the property between the spouses. This article shall briefly review the legal regime of the property of spouses.

First it should be noted that spouses may conclude a marriage contract at any time, by which they can define their property rights and duties during the marriage, as well as on divorce or separation. A marriage contract may be made before the registration of the marriage (pre-nuptial contract), or at any time after the registration of the marriage (post-nuptial contract ).  A marriage contract made before the registration of the marriage shall come into effect on the day of the registration of the marriage. A post-nuptial contract shall come into force on the date on which it is made, unless the agreement stipulates otherwise.

A marriage contract may contain the stipulation of rights and duties related to the management of property, mutual maintenance, participation in the provision for family needs and expenses as well as the procedure for partitioning property on divorce and other matters related to the spouse’s mutual relations in property. The rights and duties of the spouses provided for in their marriage contract may be limited in time, or the emergence or termination of rights and duties may be related to the fulfilment or omission of a certain condition stipulated in the marriage contract.

(Article to be continued next week)