[Case Summary]This case involves a dispute over the confirmation of the invalidity of a contract. Before his death, Mr. Zhang and his wife, Ms. Liu, jointly owned a public housing unit (No. 301 of a residential complex in Huairou District, Beijing). Mr. Zhang privately "sold" the property to his granddaughter, Zhang *1, without her paying any money, and transferred the ownership to her. During the litigation, Zhang *1 gifted the house to her mother, Cai *. After learning of this, Ms. Liu entrusted Beijing Henglu Law Firm to handle the case for her.Li YonghuiThe lawyer defended the client's rights and requested to confirm the invalidity of the "House Sale and Purchase Contract" and the "Real Estate Gift Agreement". The core dispute is whether the disposal of the couple's jointly owned property without the spouse's consent, and the validity of the sale contract and the subsequent gift. The applicable laws are the relevant provisions of the "Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China", the "Contract Law of the People's Republic of China", and the "Civil Code of the People's Republic of China". The court ruled that both agreements are invalid.

I. Review of the Case Facts

What should a spouse do if their partner secretly sells the couple's jointly owned house to a relative? The parties often search for terms like "Is it valid for one spouse to sell the house privately?" "Can the house purchased through the housing reform program be transferred to the husband's children and then revoked?" and "Is a house sale without the spouse's consent invalid?" Mr. Zhang and Mrs. Liu have two children: daughter Zhang *3 and son Zhang *2. Zhang *2 also has a daughter, Zhang *1. Mr. Zhang's work-unit-allocated public housing, located at No. 301 of a residential complex in Huairou District, Beijing, was purchased during the housing reform and is considered a joint marital asset. On January 10, 2023, Mr. Zhang passed away due to illness. In September 2023, Mrs. Liu went to the Huairou District Real Estate Registration Center to inquire and discovered that on December 27, 2019, Mr. Zhang signed a second-hand housing sales contract with his granddaughter Zhang *1, selling the No. 301 house to Zhang *1 for 500,000 yuan and transferring ownership to her, but Zhang *1 failed to make any payment. In the interrogation transcript, when asked "Is the real estate jointly owned by the couple?", Mr. Zhang replied "No". Mrs. Liu has now entrusted a lawyer to handle the case.Li YonghuiThe attorney, believing that Mr. Zhang had no right to transfer the jointly owned property, applied for property preservation and sought to confirm the invalidity of the sales contract. During the litigation, it was found that Mr. Zhang had already donated the house to his mother, Ms. Cai, so the attorney modified his claim to also confirm the invalidity of the donation agreement.

II. The focus of the case

  • Focus 1: Is the sales contract invalid because the seller lacks the right to dispose of the jointly owned property?Mr. Zhang concealed the fact that the property was jointly owned by the couple, and his granddaughter, knowing this, still accepted the transfer. Does this infringe on Mrs. Liu's rights and interests?
  • Focus Two: Is the gift agreement invalid?Zhang *1 and Cai *, as family members, were aware of the ownership of the property. Therefore, the transfer of ownership by gift may constitute a malicious transfer.
  • Focus 3: Whether the defendant's defense of "the family agreed to transfer the property at a low price" is valid.The defendant claimed that Mr. Zhang had informed his family before his death that he agreed to transfer the property at a low price, so could the court overturn the determination of the transfer being invalid?

III. Professional intervention by Hengluo Law Firm

The original complaint stated that:Aunty Liu argued that the house involved in the case is a jointly owned property by the couple. Mr. Zhang sold the house without her consent and concealed the fact of joint ownership, infringing her legitimate rights and interests, making the sales contract invalid; and Mr. Zhang 1 failed to pay the purchase price and donated the house to Ms. Cai in the lawsuit, so the donation agreement should also be invalid.

The defendant argued that:The three defendants disagreed with the plaintiff's claims, arguing that the house was actually purchased with funds provided by Zhang *2 and Cai *, and that the sales contract was legal and valid. Mr. Zhang had repeatedly told his family that he agreed to transfer the house at a low price before his death, but after four years, Mrs. Liu changed her mind. Zhang *1 claimed that the house was his personal property and he had the right to dispose of it and gift it to his mother.

Legal opinion of Hengluo Law Firm:Li YonghuiThe lawyer pointed out that according to the Marriage Law and the Contract Law, the house involved in the case belongs to the couple's joint property. Mr. Zhang sold it without informing or obtaining Mrs. Liu's consent, and he had no right to transfer it and infringed her rights. Therefore, the sales contract is invalid. Mr. Zhang concealed the fact of joint ownership and acted with subjective bad faith; Mr. Zhang 1, as a family member, should have been aware of the property rights but still signed the contract, infringing Mrs. Liu's rights and failing to provide evidence of having paid the purchase price. This meets the legal conditions for the contract to be invalidated. Mr. Zhang 1 and Mr. Cai knew the ownership situation but still transferred the ownership by gift, which does not meet the requirements of bona fide acquisition. Therefore, the gift agreement is also invalid.

IV. Outcome of the case

The court confirmed that the defendant's actions infringed Aunt Liu's legitimate rights and interests, adopted the main opinions of Henglue Law Firm, and based on the relevant provisions of the Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China, the Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, and the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, ruled that the involved "House Purchase Contract" and "Real Estate Donation Agreement" were invalid. The court held that Mr. Zhang disposed of the couple's jointly owned property without obtaining his spouse's consent and concealed the fact of joint ownership, rendering the purchase contract invalid; and that Zhang *1 and Cai *, knowing the ownership status, still transferred the property by donation, rendering the donation act invalid as well.

5. Henglu Law Firm's Reminder

This case is being handled by Attorney Li Yonghui from Beijing Henglu Law Firm (Practice Certificate No.: 11101199611955812, subject to the documents issued by the judicial administrative authority). During the existence of the marital relationship, neither party should dispose of the jointly owned property without authorization. In this case, the client promptly checked the registration, applied for preservation, and confirmed the invalidity of the two agreements, effectively preventing the loss of property. Reminder to rights holders: If you find that your spouse has privately transferred ownership of the property, you should promptly retrieve the registration files (interrogation transcripts often expose false statements of "non-shared ownership"), and entrust a professional lawyer to confirm the invalidity of the contract and prevent the transfer of assets.

VI. Common Questions About Real Estate Transactions FAQ

  1. Q: Is it valid for one spouse to sell the house privately without the other spouse's consent?
    A:If a spouse disposes of the couple's jointly owned property without the consent of the other spouse, and the buyer is not acting in good faith, the sales contract may be declared invalid, and the spouse's rights and interests will be protected.
  2. Q: Can the transfer of the public housing unit to the children by the husband be revoked?
    A:The housing reformed by the government belongs to the couple's joint property. Transferring the ownership without authorization violates the spouse's rights, and the spouse can sue to confirm the invalidity of the sales contract and recover the house.
  3. Q: Is a zero-consideration transfer between relatives considered a malicious transfer?
    A:If a person accepts the transfer of shares without paying the consideration and knowing that there are other shareholders, and then subsequently donates or transfers the shares, they may be deemed to have acted maliciously, and the relevant agreements may be confirmed as invalid.
  4. Q: How to collect evidence if you find that your house has been secretly transferred to someone else's name?
    A:When retrieving files and inquiring about records at the real estate registration center, one often finds untrue statements such as "I do not acknowledge joint ownership", which can be used as key evidence of invalidity.
  5. Q: Can the house be recovered after confirming that the contract is invalid?
    A:After the contract is confirmed to be invalid, the parties should restore the status quo ante. Cooperating with property preservation can prevent the further transfer of the property, and ultimately, the house registration will be transferred back to the right holder.