Order No. 20507 of 24 July 2024 of the First Civil Division of Italy’s Court of Cassation concerns maintenance during separation following a very short marriage. The couple had no children together.
The case and the referral back
The Trieste Court of Appeal had upheld monthly maintenance of €3,000 for the wife for the period under consideration. The couple had married in December 2016 and the wife had left the marital home the following spring.
The Court of Cassation allowed the ground concerning the duration of the marriage, set aside the decision on that issue and referred it back to the appellate court. The remaining grounds were declared inadmissible.
Duration is not the only factor
A short marriage does not, by itself, exclude maintenance where the conditions of Article 156 of the Italian Civil Code are met. Its duration may affect the amount. However, where the marriage was particularly brief and no genuine material and emotional partnership developed, that circumstance may also justify excluding entitlement.
The court hearing the case again must therefore assess both entitlement and amount in light of the couple’s actual married life. The order does not mean that every short marriage defeats a maintenance claim, nor does it finally cancel the contribution in this case.
