Marriage contract as a tool of unfair behavior by the Borrower-Mortgagor together with the spouse when challenging the real estate pledge agreement securing a loan agreement

the article investigates the problem of using a marriage contract as a tool for unfair behavior by a borrower-mortgagor together with a spouse when challenging a real estate pledge agreement securing a loan agreement. The aim of the study is to find effective mechanisms to counter such abuses, particularly through the invalidation of the marriage contract. The research analyzes a typical scheme where spouses premeditatedly change the statutory regime of joint marital property via a marriage contract to allow one of them to pledge the common property. Subsequently, upon a loan default, the other spouse challenges the pledge agreement, citing the extremely unfavorable position created by the marriage contract's terms, often with the support of the first spouse-borrower. The paper examines in detail the legal positions concerning the application of the statute of limitations to such disputes and substantiates the need to apply the general deadlines under the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The importance of an active procedural stance by the pledgee-lender in court is emphasized; they must prove the voluntary and informed nature of the marriage contract's conclusion, the absence of signs of an onerous transaction, and also raise the issue of the statute of limitations expiration. The methodological basis includes the formal-legal method, analysis of judicial practice, and the comparative legal method. The article's conclusions highlight the need for courts to thoroughly investigate all case circumstances and for active opposition from the pledgee to protect the stability of civil transactions and prevent the abuse of law. The special significance of proving the actual intentions of the parties when concluding the marriage contract is emphasized, as well as the need to form uniform judicial practice regarding this category of disputes. The author concludes that effective protection of the bona fide pledgee's rights is only possible through the comprehensive application of substantive and procedural remedies.

loan, pledge, invalidity of transaction, marriage contract, regime of joint marital property, statute of limitations