A Singapore court has rejected businessman Chander Agarwal’s lawsuit seeking 468,000 Singapore dollars, or about $369,000, from his former lover. He had spent the money on gifts, trips and other expenses. The judge concluded that Agarwal had spent the money voluntarily and had not expected to get it back.
The logistics company executive and former flight attendant Felicia Lee met in 2019 during a flight, while their romantic relationship began in September 2022 and continued until December 2023. After the breakup, Agarwal suspected Lee of infidelity and filed a lawsuit in March 2024.
The businessman claimed that Lee had repeatedly asked him for interest-free loans during their relationship. The amount he sought included about $206,000 in credit card expenses, $129,000 for overseas trips, $17,000 for the services of a feng shui consultant for her apartment, and another $20,000 for life insurance.
Lee said the payments had not been loans but gifts that the man had given her out of love and affection. The judge agreed with that account, noting that Agarwal had given her expensive gifts even before their relationship and had not expected money in return.
Agarwal also failed to provide documents proving an agreement concerning loans or debt. The court concluded that the evidence instead suggested that, being in love, he had been “lavishing” the woman with expensive gifts. The judge also pointed to the significant difference in their financial circumstances.
The key issue in the dispute was not the amount of money spent, but the nature of those payments during the relationship. In the court’s assessment, the facts presented did not establish an agreement for a loan, while the pattern of behavior surrounding the gifts and their earlier interactions pointed to a different picture.
It is also notable that the financial claim arose after the relationship had ended, when a serious personal conflict had already developed between the parties. This took the case beyond the scope of an ordinary debt dispute, as the court also had to assess what expectations had accompanied the earlier spending.
