In 70% of Shenzhen divorce cases, the fight is over real estate; RMB 8 million in premarital assets was nearly divided; lawyer reviews the three key steps.

Last month, in Room 1802, Tower A, Xintian Century Business Center, Futian District, a woman who runs a cross-border e-commerce business sat in front of me, clutching photocopies of three property ownership certificates. She had been married for six years, and the assets under her name totaled more than 20 million yuan, including an apartment near Nanshan Science and Technology Park that she had bought outright before marriage. She said he wanted a divorce and also wanted to divide that apartment, claiming that because it had appreciated after marriage, he was entitled to a share. I encounter this scenario several times almost every month.


In Shenzhen divorce cases, property is unavoidable. We have tracked the matrimonial and family cases our firm has handled over the past two years: about 70% involved the division of real estate, with the average amount in dispute between RMB 3 million and RMB 8 million. Some cases involved even larger amounts—last year, for a villa in Longhua, the couple fought over it for a full 14 months, and the appraisal fees alone came to more than RMB 40,000. Put plainly, in a Shenzhen divorce, real estate is the biggest battlefield.
Many people assume that if they repay the mortgage together after marriage, they own half the house. In fact, the legal calculation is much more nuanced. Article 1063 of the Civil Code clearly states that one party’s premarital property does not become community property of the spouses merely because the marriage relationship continues. However, the other party is indeed entitled to claim compensation for the portion of the mortgage jointly repaid after marriage and the corresponding appreciation. The key is whether you can produce clear bank transaction records and a timeline of the home purchase.
Last year our team handled a case in which the client was an executive at a technology company in Nanshan. Before marriage, he bought an apartment in Shenzhen Bay for a total price of RMB 16 million. After marriage, he continued to repay the mortgage using another one of his own cards, but salary and year-end bonuses were mixed into that card. Opposing counsel seized on this and argued that all post-marital mortgage repayments were community property. We reviewed nearly five years of his bank statements and reconciled them transaction by transaction. Ultimately, we preserved the entire principal of more than RMB 13 million paid from his premarital personal account and the corresponding appreciation, and recognized only the more than RMB 2 million in post-marital joint mortgage repayments for division. In the end, we preserved nearly RMB 8 million of premarital property for the client.
In fact, the decisive factor in this type of case is often not courtroom argument, but the evidence preparation stage. I usually have clients do three things: first, organize the purchase contract, transfer records, and loan contract chronologically into a table; second, open a separate account for post-marital mortgage repayments to avoid commingling of funds; third, if the parents contributed funds, be sure to retain the IOU or gift agreement. Once these three steps are complete, you will feel secure.
Now as for the child. In custody rulings, Shenzhen courts, as a general rule, place children under two years of age with their mother; this is expressly provided in Article 1084 of the Civil Code. But between the ages of two and eight, judges look at who has actually spent more time caring for the child, whose living environment is more stable, and whether elderly family members help with caregiving. We handled a case in Futian involving a five-year-old child. The father’s income was three times the mother’s, but the father traveled for work year-round, and the child had always been cared for by the mother and the maternal grandmother. We submitted kindergarten drop-off and pick-up records, parent-teacher meeting sign-in sheets, and a community certificate, and custody was ultimately awarded to the mother.
Answer: Don't just look at titles. First, check whether the lawyer has handled cases similar to yours in the past two years. For example, if your matter involves company equity, find someone who has handled equity division; if it involves small-property-rights housing, find someone who has dealt with legacy illegal construction. Then, during the first consultation, see whether they can identify two key risks in your case and one specific evidence-collection path within 20 minutes. If all they say throughout is don't worry, no problem, you can basically switch to someone else.
Zhiming Law Firm has been working in Shenzhen for 26 years and has represented a large number of cases. Our marriage and family team has handled various complex situations such as divorce disputes, cross-border property division, and custody disputes for individuals with high net worth. Director Shen Jinlong has 22 years of professional experience, holds a master's degree from Fudan University, and has worked as a senior executive in state-owned enterprises. He has a good understanding of the context of real estate and company assets. If you are experiencing something similar, you can call 0755-25986969, chat first, clarify the situation before deciding the next step.

(This article is for general legal education purposes only. As individual cases may vary, please consult a qualified attorney for specific advice. Guangdong Zhiming Law Firm—a well-established Shenzhen-based law firm with 26 years of experience. Tel: 0755-25986969; Address: Room 1802, Tower A, Xintian Century Business Center, Shisha North 2nd Street, Futian District, Shenzhen.)