Man Ordered To Pay Ex-Wife $215k For 25 Years Of Unpaid Domestic Labor

Based on the minimum wage throughout their marriage, a Spanish judge ordered a businessman to pay his ex-wife $216,611 for 25 years of unpaid domestic labor.

Ivana Moral's spouse was required to give her 217,853 dollars—just over $219,018—in a historic divorce settlement that was made public.

The amount was calculated by Judge Laura Ruiz Alaminos in Velez-Malaga, southern Spain, using the annual minimum salary for the duration of the couple's marriage, according to the news website.

According to the decision, Ivana spent almost all of her time during their marriage caring for their family and working as a housewife. The separated couple has two daughters.

Ivana's husband is also required to give her a monthly pension of $534 as well as $428 and $641 each to his two girls, who are now 20 and 14.

After years of hard effort, the mother-of-two who married her ex in 1995 and filed for divorce in 2020 said she is pleased with the settlement.

'Clearly, this was a case of abuse to be completely excluded financially (by my ex-husband) with nothing left after my marriage ended, so I and my daughters were left with nothing after all these years of putting all my time, energy and love in the family,' she told inews.

'I was supporting my husband in his work and in the family as a mother and a father. I was never allowed access to his financial affairs; everything was in his name.'

The court's decision stated that Ivana had committed herself "to essentially working in the home, which meant looking after the home and the family and all that involved" since she and her husband were wed.

The separation of property regime that Ms. Moral's husband had requested her to sign prior to their marriage was the document that set the terms of the couple's union.

It stated that they would only share possessions and that whatever money each side made would be theirs alone.

The agreement would have prevented Ms. Moral from accessing any of the wealth built up over the course of their long-term relationship.

She informed inews that she has now spoken out about her situation because she wants women to be aware of their rights.

The amount she would have made yearly from June 1995 to December 2020 was broken down into legal documents.

Ivana claimed in an interview with Cadena Ser radio that her husband did not "want her to work" outside the house.

He would only let her work at the gyms he owned, where she handled 'public relations and acted as a monitor'.

Otherwise, she said, 'I have dedicated myself exclusively to housework, looking after my husband and the house,' she said.

'He made me take on the specific role' of doing domestic chores, to the extent that 'I was in a place where I couldn't really do much else,' she said.

Because it was "very well deserved," the sentence had made her "very happy," she said.

The decision is anticipated to be challenged by Ms. Moral's ex-husband, who only wished to divide their home and possessions after the divorce.