Taiwan court exempts daughters from supporting gambling-addicted father

Hsinchu: A court has absolved two sisters of their legal duty to financially support their father, citing his history of gambling, infidelity, and neglect. The father, identified by the surname Chen, accumulated significant gambling debts, supported a mistress, and never contributed to his wife and daughters' living expenses.

Chen's daughters testified that they lived with their maternal grandparents from the age of three and one, respectively, and were raised solely by their mother. Their mother had previously attempted suicide due to Chen's gambling debts and extramarital affairs, but was saved by her parents. The couple divorced in the early 1990s.

To alleviate their mother's financial burden, the daughters worked part-time from junior high school. Despite the divorce, Chen repeatedly harassed his ex-wife and daughters at their home, causing them fear and attracting neighborhood criticism, leading to multiple relocations. His mother also reportedly exhibited favoritism towards males, shaming the daughters.

Chen's wife endured his gambling addiction and constant affairs, facing debt collectors at their home. He allegedly denied his children's paternity and subjected his wife to verbal abuse. After the mother and children moved back to her parents' home, Chen and his mother continued to demand money, engaging in emotional blackmail. The wife reportedly repaid millions of dollars in debts on his behalf.

Chen is now in a nursing home in Kinmen County due to a mental illness and inability to care for himself. The daughters argued that their father's verbal abuse, gambling, and resulting debts caused them significant emotional and psychological distress throughout their lives. They also highlighted his failure to fulfill his parental responsibilities, leaving their mother to raise them alone. The court, considering the father's conduct and the daughters' difficult upbringing, ruled that enforcing their support obligation would be unfair.