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Singapore court rules man, 97, mentally fit to marry mistress
The widower, who had an extramarital affair with his secretary since 1971, has filed separate lawsuits against his second son and grandson
SCMP’s Asia desk4:13pm, 29 Jan 2026
A Singapore court has dismissed a man’s attempt to have his 97-year-old father declared mentally incapable for wanting to marry his long-time mistress, with the judge saying that mental capacity should not be determined solely by age or appearance.
The elderly man, who is still chairman of the chemical company he founded in the 1960s, had been conducting an extramarital affair with his secretary since 1971, Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao reported on Tuesday, citing court proceedings.
The two had a child together, while he had three sons with his wife, whom he married in 1950. His wife, who died in 2014, was aware of the affair but did not divorce him.
In 2016, the secretary moved in with the businessman and his second son’s family. In mid-2021, the woman told the businessman’s family that she and the patriarch would be getting married on June 11 that year.
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This led to a family meeting. The secretary said that, as a Catholic, she wanted to be legally married, and if the family did not support her, she would leave.
The businessman’s second son filed an application in the family court asking that his father be ruled mentally incompetent and therefore incapable of making independent decisions, such as marriage. He claimed that, following a fall at home in 2017, his father’s mental capacity had deteriorated and that he showed signs of dementia.
A grandson of the businessman, who is the second son’s child, also filed a notice of objection against the marriage, but later withdrew it. Both father and son claimed that the patriarch was being influenced and manipulated by others.
Upon learning about the lawsuits, the businessman evicted the grandson and changed his will to state that neither of them would inherit any property unless they withdrew their applications.
The man also filed two civil suits – one against his second son to recover S$3.8 million in company money and another against his grandson for refusing to move out. Both suits are still pending.
Family court judge Shobha Nair dismissed the second son’s application. She pointed out that despite arguing his father’s loss of mental capacity in 2017, he still accepted the older man’s decision to appoint him as the company’s general manager in 2019. The second son has filed an appeal against the ruling.
As long as we confirm that the person involved possesses the mental capacity, we must respect his decision
Shobha Nair, family court judge
Recorded conversations between the businessman and his grandson also showed the patriarch knew what he was doing, Nair said. His slower speech, asking people to repeat themselves and occasional confusion could be just age-related and not a sign of dementia.
Doctors who assessed the businessman said that he had mild cognitive impairment, including short-term memory loss. But this did not impair his understanding or his ability to make decisions such as marriage and will revisions.
In her judgment, Nair urged the public not to speculate why a 97-year-old would want to remarry, saying: “As long as we confirm that the person involved possesses the mental capacity, we must respect his decision.”
The court’s role was solely to determine if the man decided on his own free will, not whether the decision was morally or logically acceptable, she said.
Nair found no evidence that the secretary was intending to defraud her employer of money, noting that the relationship lasted 50 years – longer than many marriages.
The sons’ actions were likely triggered by their father’s decision to remarry, as it made them relive the pain of watching their mother suffer from the affair, she added.
Citing Singapore’s Mental Capacity Act, she warned against making assumptions about an elderly person’s cognitive abilities based on age, appearance or behaviour.
There are about 1,800 centenarians in Singapore, around 20 per cent more than five years earlier, according to a CNA report on January 19.
Singapore is one of the fastest-ageing countries in the world. The number of citizens aged 80 or older had risen by about 60 per cent since 2015, according to a report by The Straits Times last September.
The Ministry of Health has projected that the country is set to attain “super aged” status – when the share of its population aged 65 and above crosses 21 per cent – this year. By 2030, that figure is expected to rise to a quarter of the population.
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