Droit patrimonial des couples

Study of the rules governing property relations for married and unmarried couples; Married couples: review of the primary matrimonial regime rules applicable to spouses (covered in family law) and study of secondary matrimonial regimes: the default statutory community of property regime, contractual community regimes, the separation of property regime and its corrective mechanisms (participation in acquests, internal common assets, etc.); operation during the marriage and liquidation/partition following the marriage; theory of matrimonial advantages; contractual arrangements between spouses and the "Valkeniers" pact; Unmarried couples: Legal cohabitants: their rights and duties, the applicable default property regime, and the legal cohabitation agreement; Free union or de facto cohabitation: general law, cohabitation agreement, and tontine or accrual clauses.

Upon completion of this course unit, the student will be able to distinguish between the various forms of couple relationships and the rules applicable to them; understand and explain the financial arrangements within a couple—that is, between spouses or legal or de facto cohabitants, as well as between them and third parties; recognize the different regimes applicable to married and unmarried individuals; understand and analyze a marriage contract or legal cohabitation agreement; understand and analyze specific clauses within such contracts; and determine the rules applicable to the liquidation of a matrimonial property regime or a legal cohabitation agreement.

Required and Corequired knowledge and skills

Mastery of the skills and knowledge covered in the courses on the law of obligations and family law is essential. Having taken—or taking concurrently—the course on succession and gratuitous transfers (gifts) is an asset, as certain concepts and skills are complementary.

The course will be taught by the instructor through a combination of formal lectures and questions addressed to students—who are expected to have prepared specific topics in advance (using the course materials and/or other recommended texts). This approach facilitates a deeper understanding of the subject matter, the exchange of viewpoints, and the analysis of case studies (such as practical scenarios to be resolved during class, the reading and discussion of illustrative court rulings, and the review and critical analysis of agreements between partners—whether married or unmarried). Attendance is strongly recommended, as the analysis of practical cases and agreements regarding couples' assets will be covered exclusively during these sessions.

References, bibliography, and recommended reading

In addition to the written course materials (syllabus) available to students, they are also encouraged to consult the following general works :

• P. De Page, Traité de droit civil belge – Tome IX : Les régimes matrimoniaux, Bruxelles Bruylant, 2025 ;
• Y.-H. Leleu, Droit patrimonial des couples, Bruxelles, Larcier, 2021 ;
• A.-C. Van Gysel, Le couple, Limal, Anthemis, 2022.
• Sous la coordination de V. Palm, Les couples à la loupe, Limal, Anthemis, 2022.

Course notes

• Syllabus
• Université virtuelle

Additional information

Interested students could, at the invitation of the course instructor and on a voluntary basis, attend certain conferences or symposia dealing with topics related to the course.

Contacts

thomas.van.halteren@ulb.be

Campus

Solbosch

Method(s) of evaluation

• written examination

written examination

• Open question with short answer
• Open question with developed answer
• Closed question with multiple choices (MCQ)
• Closed question with Multiple Answers (MAQ)
• Closed question True or False (T/F)

Open-ended questions may involve resolving practical case studies that require stating the applicable rule and applying it to the facts presented, and/or commenting on a judicial decision based on concepts learned in the course, and/or commenting on an agreement between members of a couple or on specific clause(s) within such a contract.

Mark calculation method (including weighting of intermediary marks)

The grade awarded to students corresponds to the result of the written exam. Each question (or question type) on the exam is assigned a specific number of points, taking into account the length of the question—which may consist of sub-questions—and the expected student responses. The total constitutes the final exam grade.

Language(s) of evaluation

• french