From BBC News · · 1m 30s
He spent $369,000 on her. The court said it was a gift
A Singapore CEO sued his ex to get back half a million dollars in presents, and the judge read him the receipts he never kept.
In brief
A Singapore CEO sued his ex to get back half a million dollars in presents, and the judge read him the receipts he never kept. Generosity you never documented as a loan is a gift, and a breakup does not retroactively turn it into a debt. Originally reported by BBC News.
The half-million dollar breakup
Chander Agarwal, CEO of a logistics firm, sued his ex-girlfriend Felicia Lee for S$468,000. Singapore's High Court told him the money was his to give and gone.
They met on a flight
Agarwal met Lee, a former flight attendant, on a plane in 2019. They dated from September 2022 to December 2023, then split after he suspected her of an affair.
His version: interest-free loans
He listed S$206,000 in credit card charges, S$129,000 on overseas trips, S$20,000 for her life insurance and S$17,000 for a fengshui master for her apartment.
“requested various interest-free loans”
No paper, no case
Lee called them gifts made out of love. The judge agreed, because Agarwal could not produce a single document showing she had acknowledged receiving any loan.
“gifts made out of love and affection”
The judge saw a grudge
He described a smitten man of ample means showering a woman who was not in his league, and noted her texts showed awe and sometimes reluctance to accept the gifts.
“when their relationship ended on a sour note, [Agarwal] became embittered and was determined to extract a price from her”
A fury, either gender
He closed by quoting Congreve on hell having no fury like a woman scorned, then added that men manage it too. A 2023 suitor lost S$3m in claims against a woman who rejected him.
“This case shows that such emotion is not the sole province of one gender”
Here's the gist
Generosity you never documented as a loan is a gift, and a breakup does not retroactively turn it into a debt.
