Precedent No. 31/2020/AL

Regarding the determination of the right to rent or buy a house owned by the state according to Decree No. 61/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government as a property right

Approved by the Council of Judges of the Supreme People's Court on February 5, 2020 and promulgated under Decision No. 50/QD-CA dated February 25, 2020 of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court

Source of case law:

Final judgment No. 05/2018/DS-GDT dated April 10, 2018 of the Council of Judges of the Supreme People's Court on the civil case "Dispute over division of common property regarding the purchase of a house at a discounted price" in Ho Chi Minh City between the plaintiff Ms. Nguyen Thi H and the defendant Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L; persons with related rights and obligations including 12 people.

Location of case law:

Paragraph 1 of the “Court's Opinion” section.

Overview of case law:

- Case law:

Individuals eligible to purchase State-owned housing under Decree No. 61/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government on buying, selling and trading in housing, but while alive, that person has not completed the procedures to purchase the house at a discounted price according to the provisions of law.

- Legal solutions:

In this case, it must be determined that the right to rent or buy a house owned by the State is a property right and must be transferred to that person's heirs.

Legal provisions relating to precedents:

- Articles 172, 188, 634 of the 1995 Civil Code (corresponding to Articles 163, 181, 631 of the 2005 Civil Code; Articles 105, 115, 609 of the 2015 Civil Code);

- Decree No. 61/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government on buying, selling and trading of housing.

Keywords of case law:

“State-owned housing”; “House purchase price”; “Asset”; “Property rights”.

CASE CONTENT:

In the Petition dated July 5, 2007, the Supplementary Petitions dated August 29, 2008, January 15, 2010, July 20, 2010, August 10, 2010 and the testimony at the Court, the plaintiff, Ms. Nguyen Thi H, stated:

Her parents are Mr. Nguyen Thanh T (died in 1995) and Mrs. Lam Thi c (died on January 25, 2011) and have 3 children together: Mrs. (H), Mr. Nguyen Van T1, Mr. Nguyen Van T2 (died in 1992, married Mrs. Ho Thi H4 and had 4 children together: Mr. Nguyen Ho Thanh C1, Nguyen Ho Hoang D, Nguyen Thi An T2, Nguyen Thi My D). Mrs. T participated in the revolution before August 1945 in Bac Lieu. On July 20, 1954, Mrs. T gathered in the North. In 1964, Mrs. C married another man. In October 1975, Mrs. T worked at Department A of Military Region 7, Ho Chi Minh City. In 1976, Mrs. T lived with Mrs. Le Thi T4 (not registered for marriage). Around the beginning of 1976, Mr. T was given house number 63 (2nd floor) on V Street, Ward X by the Army, now house number 63 on B Street, Ward H, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. In Decision No. 092/QD dated April 16, 1981, the Housing Council of Military Region 7 officially granted the above house to Mr. T.

On August 27, 1995, Mr. T died without leaving a will. Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L, the stepdaughter of Mr. T4, signed a contract to rent the house and requested to buy the house at a discounted price according to Decree No. 61/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government on buying, selling and trading houses (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 61/CP). When she learned about this action of Ms. L, she filed a complaint. On July 5, 2001, the Defense Inspectorate of the Military Region 7 Command held a meeting to resolve the matter with the following content: if her family no longer has a complaint, house No. 63, B Street will be resolved for Ms. L to buy at a discounted price; after the purchase is completed, the expenses in the purchase of the house from the State will be deducted, the remaining value of the house will be divided by the sisters in the family; if no agreement can be reached, it will be resolved according to the law.

However, after completing the purchase price, Ms. L appropriated the house and rented it to NV Limited Liability Company, without discussing with her and Mr. T1 to agree on dividing the value of the house. She determined that house number 63 B street was sold by the State at a discount with the treatment of the Party and the State to Mr. T, so Mr. T's children should enjoy it. She requested the Court to force Ms. L to divide to Mr. T's heirs 1/2 of the value of house number 63 B street, after deducting the purchase price of the house and related costs in purchasing the house at a discount.

In the Supplementary Petition for a lawsuit dated August 29, 2008, she requested the Court to divide house number 63, B street according to the law to the heirs of Mr. T, including Mr. T4, Mrs. T1, Mr. T2, Mrs. L (if it can be proven that they are legally adopted children) and requested Ms. L to refund the house rent from 1998 to present, which is about 2,000,000,000 VND.

On July 20, 2010, she filed a petition requesting the Court to determine that the contract signed by Department A of Military Region 7 to sell house No. 63, Street B to Ms. L was illegal, requesting to cancel the house sale contract between Department A of Military Region 7 and Ms. L and her husband; recognizing that Mr. T's heirs are entitled to Mr. T's standards to buy house No. 63, Street B. On August 10, 2010, Ms. H filed a petition to withdraw the request dated July 20, 2010.

On November 17, 2014, Ms. H filed a request to divide the common property, house number 63, B street, according to the agreement minutes of the Inspectorate of the Ministry of National Defense, without requesting to divide the amount of money that Ms. L had rented to NV Limited Liability Company for house number 63, B street from 2002 to present.

The defendant, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L, stated:

Her parents are Le Thi T4 and Nguyen Van C2 (Head of the Central Organizing Committee of the Southern Office - died in 1973). In 1975, the Central Organizing Committee granted her and her family part of a house at 201/6 Y, now 4/1 (sometimes written as 204/1) HV Street, Ward D, District G, Ho Chi Minh City. After C2 passed away, T4 started a family with T. In 1981, T4 got pregnant, so she temporarily moved to 63 B Street to take care of her sick mother. In 1982, T4 died. At that time, T was sick and often had to go to the hospital, but there was no one to take care of her (T's children had moved their household registration and moved to another place to live), so she stayed at 63 B Street to take care of T.

In 1986, at the request of Mrs. T, her sisters completed the procedures to return house number 4/1 HV street to register their household at house number 63 B street. In 1993, Mr. T made a power of attorney giving her full authority to resolve matters related to rights, obligations and responsibilities regarding house number 63 B street; Mr. T clearly stated in the power of attorney that the power of attorney was valid while he was alive and even after his death. In 1995, Mr. T died. In 2001, when Mrs. H signed the procedures to purchase the house, Mrs. H and Mr. T1 filed a complaint. The Military Region 7 Command resolved the matter by rejecting Mrs. H's complaint, allowing her and her husband to purchase the house. After the purchase, the amount of the house purchase price would be deducted, and the remaining amount would be agreed upon by the sisters in the family; if no agreement could be reached, it would be resolved according to the law. Based on personal feelings and being sisters, she also intended that if Ms. H filed a complaint and she was considered for a reduction in the house purchase price according to Mr. T's standards, she would support Mr. T's biological children. Therefore, she also agreed with the settlement of the Military Region 7 Command, but later, Ms. H and Mr. T1 continued to complain, so she was not allowed to buy at a discount according to Mr. T's policy but bought according to the policy of a martyr's child at a price of 606,311,587 VND. Because she paid in one lump sum, she was entitled to a 10% reduction in the house price and 20% reduction in the land price, the total amount to be paid was 506,450,828 VND. Thus, she bought the house at a discount according to her standards (the standards of a martyr's child), not Mr. T's standards, so the house number 63, B street mentioned above is the private property of her and her husband. On October 9, 2002, she and her husband, Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 (died on July 4, 2006), were granted the above-mentioned house ownership and land use rights certificate. She did not accept Ms. H's request to sue.

After purchasing the house at a discounted price, Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1 (her brother) spent 400,000,000 VND (equivalent to 80 taels of gold) to repair the house. If Ms. H's request is accepted, Mr. H1's house repair cost of 80 taels of gold must be deducted.

Persons with related rights and obligations:

- Mr. Nguyen Van T1 presented: He agreed with the presentation and request of Ms. H.

- Ms. Ho Thi H4 and her brothers and sisters Nguyen Ho Thanh C1, Nguyen Ho Hoang D, Nguyen Thi An T3, Nguyen Thi My D jointly authorized Ms. H to resolve the case.

- Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1 stated: His name has been in the household registration book of house number 63, B street since 1989. Around 2004, he and Mrs. L repaired and built an addition behind the house, worth about 400,000,000 VND. According to him, this house is not the inheritance of Mr. T. In case the Court accepts Mrs. H's request, he requests to get back the money for house repairs calculated according to the gold price at the time of 2004. If the Court does not accept Mrs. H's request, he does not request anything.

- Mr. Nguyen Hoang Minh M1 and Ms. Hoang Nguyen Ngoc T7 (children of Mr. Nguyen Phi H3) stated: They have no opinion, no request, no suggestion that the Court try them in absentia according to the law.

The house valuation record dated September 8, 2010 of the People's Court of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City determined the value of the house and land at 63 B Street to be 33,993,333,920 VND. The October 2010 calculation record of the District 3 Public Service Company under the People's Committee of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City determined the value of the house Mr. H1 built to be 264,114,568 VND.

In the Civil Judgment at First Instance No. 17/2009/DSST dated April 28, 2009, the People's Court of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City decided (summary):

Not accepting the request of Ms. Nguyen Thi H, Mr. Nguyen Van T1, Ms. Nguyen Thi C, whose Ms. Nguyen Thi H is the natural guardian, Ms. Ho Thi H4, brothers and sisters Nguyen Ho Thanh C1, Nguyen Ho Hoang D, Nguyen Thi An T3, Nguyen Thi My D regarding the division of inheritance for house 63 (2nd floor) B street, ward H, district 1, Ho Chi Minh City.

After the first instance trial, Ms. H and Mr. T1 filed an appeal.

In the Civil Appeal Judgment No. 1446/2009/DSPT dated August 14, 2009, the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City annulled the Civil Judgment at First Instance No. 17/2009/DSST dated April 28, 2009 of the People's Court of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, and transferred the case to the People's Court of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City for re-trial according to the first-instance procedure, for the reason that the Court of First Instance did not summon the wife and children of Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1; the heirs of Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 (died in 2006) to participate in the proceedings, which was an omission. The Court of First Instance needs to clarify the dispute relationship in this case.

Because there are parties abroad (Mr. Nguyen Hoang Minh M1 and Ms. Hoang Nguyen Ngoc T7), the People's Court of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City has transferred the case file to the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City for settlement according to its jurisdiction.

In the Civil Judgment at First Instance No. 186/2014/DS-ST dated March 6, 2014, the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City decided:

Partially accept the request of Ms. Nguyen Thi H.

Compel Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L to be responsible for handing over to Ms. Nguyen Thi H, Mr. Nguyen Van T1 and the heirs of Mr. Nguyen Van T2 the difference in money from the purchase of the house at a specific price as follows:

Ms. Nguyen Thi H: 3,882,238,480 VND, ratio 1/8. Mr. Nguyen Van T1: 3,882,238,480 VND, ratio 1/8. Mr. Nguyen Van T2's heirs include: Nguyen Ho Thanh C1, Nguyen Ho Hoang D, Nguyen Thi An T3 and Nguyen Thi My D: 3,882,238,480 VND, ratio 1/8. Each person is 970,559,620 VND, this amount is temporarily assigned to Ms. H to manage, Ms. H is responsible for handing it over to Mr. T2's co-heirs.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L received a total of 20,878,905,440 VND, ratio 5/8 (3,882,238,480 VND + 16,996,666,960 VND).

Do not accept Ms. L's request to confirm that the above house belongs to her personally.

The court of first instance also decides on court fees, liability for late enforcement of judgment and the right to appeal.

After the first instance trial, Ms. Nguyen Thi H and Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L filed an appeal.

In Civil Appeal Judgment No. 125/2015/DS-PT dated August 21, 2015, the High People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City decided:

Not accepting the appeal of Ms. Nguyen Thi H; accepting the appeal of Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L; amending the above first instance civil judgment as follows:

Determine that house No. 63 (2nd floor) B Street, Ward H, District I, Ho Chi Minh City is the property owned by Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L and Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 (died on July 4, 2006), according to Certificate of house ownership and land use rights No. 19980/2002 dated October 9, 2002 issued by Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee.

Not accepting the request of Ms. Nguyen Thi H, the request of Mr. Nguyen Van T1 and the request of the parties Nguyen Ho Thanh C1, Nguyen Ho Hoang D, Nguyen Thi An T3 and Nguyen Thi My D to enjoy the value of house number 63 (2nd floor) B street, ward H, district 1, Ho Chi Minh City, specifically as follows:

Do not accept Ms. Nguyen Thi H's request to demand Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L to divide the amount of 8,320,548,575 VND.

Do not accept Mr. Nguyen Van T1's request to demand that Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L divide the amount of 8,320,548,575 VND.

Not accepting the request of the parties Nguyen Ho Thanh C1, Nguyen Ho Hoang D, Nguyen Thi An T3 and Nguyen Thi My D to demand that Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L divide the amount of 8,320,548,575 VND.

On October 18, 2015, Ms. Nguyen Thi H submitted a request to review the above civil appellate judgment according to the cassation procedure.

In the Decision on appeal for review No. 01/QDKNGDT-VKS-DS dated August 22, 2017, the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Procuracy appealed the above civil appellate judgment and requested the Council of Judges of the Supreme People's Court to review the case in the direction of annulling the Civil Appeal Judgment No. 125/2015/DS-PT dated August 21, 2015 of the High People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City and annulling the Civil Judgment at First Instance No. 186/2014/DSST dated March 6, 2014 of the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City; handing over the case file to the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City for retrial in accordance with the provisions of law with the following judgment:

Mr. Nguyen Thanh T lived with Ms. Nguyen Thi C and had 3 children together, including Mr. and Mrs. Nguyen Thi H, Nguyen Van T1 and Nguyen Van T2 (Mr. T2 died in 1992, had a wife named Ho Thi H4 and 4 children). In 1975, Mr. T returned to the South to live with Ms. Le Thi T4 without any children together. Ms. T4 had two children of her own, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L and Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1.

The property in dispute between the two parties is the house at No. 63 (2nd floor) V Street, Ward X, District I (now B Street, Ward H, District I, Ho Chi Minh City). The house was originally taken over by the Military Region 7 Command after the liberation of the South. In 1981, Military Region 7 issued a "License for Ownership and Use" No. 092/QD dated April 16, 1981 to Mr. Nguyen Thanh T. According to the content of the license, the house was granted to Mr. T "to create all conditions for food and accommodation for the cadre's family, for long-term stability and granted due to the cadre's family's circumstances of not having a house". At the time of issuance, Ms. H and Mr. T1 (Mr. T's son) lived with Mr. T and had permanent residence registration at the above house. In 1982, Ms. L and Mr. H1's two sisters moved in to live with Mr. T and were sponsored by Mr. T to register their household registration at the above house.

On June 9, 1993, Mr. T made a "Power of Attorney" with the following content: "...I authorize my child Nguyen Thi Kim L to represent me while I am alive and authorize her to have full authority to resolve matters related to the rights, obligations and responsibilities for the house granted by Military Region 7 and the City Department of Housing and Land (including the upper floors and the floor area below the land that had been previously divided between the two families) when I unfortunately pass away". The document was witnessed by a representative of the Residential Group, a representative of Branch 7 - Veterans Association of Ward H, District I; a representative of the Police of Ward H, District I and confirmed by the People's Committee of Ward H. Thus, this is a power of attorney for Ms. L to represent Mr. T while he is alive as well as when Mr. T passes away to resolve matters related to the house, not to authorize Ms. L for the entire house as determined by the Court of Appeal.

On August 27, 1995, Mr. T died without leaving a will. In 1998, Ms. L submitted a petition to the Military Region 7 Housing Council to purchase the above house at a discounted price according to Decree 61/CP, but Ms. H and Mr. T1 complained that they did not agree to let Ms. L buy the above house according to Mr. T's regime. In the Complaint Resolution Minutes dated July 5, 2001 of the Inspectorate of the Ministry of National Defense, the two parties agreed to "...agree to let Ms. L buy the house at 63 B Street. The division after deducting the expenses of obligations to the State, the remaining value will be discussed and agreed upon by the sisters, if not, it will be resolved according to the law" and in the Complaint Resolution Minutes of the People's Committee of Ward H dated August 17, 2001, Ms. L also confirmed "agreeing to make a commitment according to the resolution minutes of the Military Region dated July 5, 2001....".

On October 2, 2001, Department A of Military Region 7 signed a contract to lease the above house to Ms. L. After that, the Housing Council of Military Region 7 completed the procedures to sell the above house to Ms. L according to Decree 61/CP. On October 9, 2002, Ms. L and her husband (Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 who died in 2006) were granted a certificate of house ownership and land use rights.

Thus, although before his death, Mr. T had not completed the procedures to purchase the house at a fixed price for the above house, Mr. T was still considered by Military Region 7 to be a military officer, a person with revolutionary contributions, and the decision to grant a house to Mr. T by Military Region 7 had not been revoked. At the same time, according to the regulations on selling State-owned houses, for houses with disputes, Complaints will not resolve the sale procedures, so only after there is an agreement between the two parties will Military Region 7 resolve to allow Ms. L to be the person to purchase the house at a fixed price. On the other hand, in Official Dispatch No. 8709/SXD-BKTBN dated December 8, 2008 of the Department of Construction of Ho Chi Minh City, it was determined that: When selling the house to Ms. L, it was based on Decision No. 092/QD dated April 14, 1981 of Military Region 7 on granting a house to Mr. T, Confirmation No. 672/XN-QLDT dated December 5, 1998 of the Urban Management Department of District G confirming that Ms. L returned the house to the State and the Minutes of the July 5, 2001 meeting to resolve complaints of the Inspectorate of the Ministry of National Defense of Military Region 7. Therefore, there is a basis to determine that this is a common property agreed upon in the minutes dated July 5, 2001 and the minutes dated August 7, 2001 between Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L and the two sisters Ms. Nguyen Thi H and Mr. Nguyen Van T1, so the Court of First Instance determined that this was a dispute. The division of common property from the purchase of the house at the price of the house to accept Ms. H's lawsuit request is well-founded; however, when determining the proportion of the value to be divided, it should have been necessary to deduct the cost of buying the house before dividing it, but the Court of First Instance divided the house value for Ms. L into 1/2 and then deducted the cost of buying the house from the remaining 1/2 and then divided it equally among the parties, including Ms. L, which is incorrect. The Court of Appeal did not consider the above content but held that Mr. T had made a "Power of Attorney" dated June 9, 1993 authorizing Ms. L for the entire house above and that Ms. L had to return the house granted to the State due to the trade-off of the rights she was enjoying to determine that the house above is the property owned by Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L and Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 (Ms. L's husband died in 2006) is incorrect, not ensuring the rights of Ms. T's children.

At the appeal hearing, the representative of the Supreme People's Procuracy requested the Supreme People's Court's Judicial Council to accept the appeal decision of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Procuracy.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT:

[1] The origin of house number 63 (2nd floor) V street, ward X, district I (now B street, ward H, district I, Ho Chi Minh City) was taken over by the Military Region 7 Command and used since the liberation of the South. In 1981, Military Region 7 issued "License of ownership and use" No. 092/QD dated April 16, 1981 to Mr. Nguyen Thanh T. According to the content of the license, the house was granted to Mr. T "to create all conditions for food and accommodation for the cadre's family, long-term stability and granted due to the cadre's family's circumstances of not having a house", at the time of issuance, Ms. Nguyen Thi H and Mr. Nguyen Van T1 (Mr. T's son) lived with Mr. T, with permanent residence at the above house. In 1982, the two sisters, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L and Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1, moved their household registration to live with Mr. T. Thus, Mr. T was a person with revolutionary contributions, so Military Region 7 considered granting him house number 63, B street, according to the standards of military officers. By the time Mr. T died in 1995, he had not completed the procedures to purchase the house at the above price. According to the provisions of Article 188 and Article 634 of the 1995 Civil Code, Mr. T's right to rent or purchase the house at the above price is a property right (valued in money) and is transferred to Mr. T's heirs. Therefore, Ms. H and Mr. T1 are entitled to inherit the right to rent or purchase the house at the above price from Mr. T.

[2] In 1998, when Ms. L submitted a petition to the Military Region 7 Housing Council to purchase the above house at a discounted price according to Decree No. 61/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government on buying, selling and trading houses, Ms. H and Mr. T1 complained and did not agree to let Ms. L buy the above house according to Mr. T's regime. In the Complaint Resolution Minutes dated July 5, 2001 of the Inspectorate of the Ministry of National Defense, the two parties agreed to "...agree to let Ms. L buy the house at 63 B Street. The division after deducting the expenses of obligations to the State, the remaining value will be discussed and agreed upon by the sisters, if not, it will be resolved according to the law" and in the Complaint Resolution Minutes of the People's Committee of Ward H dated August 17, 2001, Ms. L also confirmed "agreeing to make a commitment according to the Resolution Minutes of the Military Region dated July 5, 2001...". On October 2, 2001, Department A of Military Region 7 signed a contract to lease the above house to Ms. L. After that, the Housing Council of Military Region 7 completed the procedures to sell the above house to Ms. L according to Decree No. 61/CP. On October 9, 2002, Ms. L and her husband (Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 who died in 2006) were granted the Certificate of ownership of the above house and land use rights. Thus, Ms. L was able to buy the above house at No. 63, B Street due to the agreement between Ms. H, Mr. T1 and Ms. L on July 5, 2001, then Military Region 7 resolved to allow Ms. L to buy the house at the price of the house. Therefore, there is a basis to determine that house at No. 63, B Street is the common property of Ms. H, Mr. T1 and Ms. L.

[3] The power of attorney dated June 9, 1993 of Mrs. T stated: “I authorize my daughter Nguyen Thi Kim L to represent me while I am alive and to fully authorize her to resolve matters related to the rights, obligations and responsibilities regarding the house granted by Military Region 7 and the City Department of Housing and Land (including the first floor and the floor area below the land that had been previously divided between the two families) when I unfortunately pass away”. This is a power of attorney for Mrs. L to represent Mrs. T while she is alive, as well as when Mr. T passes away to resolve matters related to the house (procedurally), not to authorize Mrs. L to own the entire house as determined by the Court of Appeal.

[4] In addition, according to Ms. L, the reason Ms. L registered her household at house number 63, street B was because Mr. T asked her to return house number 4/1, street HV, ward D, district G, Ho Chi Minh City, which she and her family were granted under the martyr regime. In the file, there is no document showing that in order to register her household at house number 63, street B, Ms. L had to return house number 4/1, street HV above. Ms. L stated that she bought the house at 63 B Street under the martyr's regime, not under the regime of Mr. T. According to Official Dispatch No. 8709/SXD-BKTBN dated December 8, 2008 of the Department of Construction of Ho Chi Minh City, the Housing Sales Council of Military Region 7, when preparing the procedures for selling the above house, did not exempt Mr. T from preferential policies for people with revolutionary contributions, but sold the house based on documents such as the application for purchasing a state-owned house, Ms. L's household registration book, Decision 092/QD dated April 16, 1981 on granting a house to Mr. T, Certificate No. 672/XN-QLDT dated December 5, 1998 on Ms. L's return of the house at 4/1 HV Street... The first-instance and appellate courts have not yet clarified which preferential regime Ms. L was allowed to buy the house under? The preferential regime of Mr. T or the regime of Ms. L's children of martyrs is an omission.

[5] On the other hand, according to Decision No. 05/QD-UB-QLDT dated January 4, 1995 of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, the land price on B Street is 4,000,000 VND/m2 ⁽ 328.21m2 ^x 4,000,000 VND/m2 ⁼ 1,312,840,000 VND), while Ms. L bought the above land and house with a land price of 392,296,000 VND. Thus, the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal have not clarified under which regime Ms. L's house purchase is reduced? How is the house purchase price reduced according to the year of service and the specific percentage of reduction considered?

[6] The Court of First Instance determined that house No. 63, Street B, was the common property of Ms. H, Mr. T1 and Ms. L, which was reasonable; however, when determining the proportion of the value to be divided, the cost of buying the house and Ms. L's efforts should have been deducted, and then the common property divided. However, the Court of First Instance divided 1/2 of the house value for Ms. L, then deducted the cost of buying the house from the remaining 1/2 value, and then divided equally among Ms. H, Mr. T1 and Ms. L, which was incorrect.

[7] The Court of Appeal held that Mr. T had made a "Power of Attorney" dated June 9, 1993 authorizing Ms. L for the entire house number 63, B Street and that Ms. L had to return house number 4/1, HV Street, Ward D, District G, Ho Chi Minh City to the State because the exchange of benefits currently enjoyed to determine that house number 63, B Street is the property owned by Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L and Mr. Nguyen Phi H3 (Ms. L's husband died in 2006) was incorrect and did not ensure the rights of Mr. T's children.

[8] When re-examining the case, the Court of First Instance needs to appraise and value the disputed land area; calculate after deducting the costs that Ms. L spent to buy the house and Ms. L's efforts, the remaining amount will be divided between the plaintiff and the defendant, taking into account the market price to ensure the rights of the parties according to the provisions of law. In addition, during the use of the house, Ms. L and Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1 invested in repairing the house, Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1 submitted a request to the Court to return the house repair costs to him of about 400,000,000 VND, so when re-examining the case, the Court of First Instance needs to instruct Mr. Nguyen Thanh H1 to pay the advance court fees and resolve the case together in the same case.

For the above reasons,

DECISION:

Pursuant to Point b, Clause 2, Article 337, Clause 3, Article 343 of the Civil Procedure Code.

1. Accept the Decision of appeal for review No. 01/QDKNGDT-VKS-DS dated August 22, 2017 of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Procuracy.
2. Annul the Civil Appeal Judgment No. 125/2015/DS-PT dated August 21, 2015 of the High People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City and annul the Civil First Instance Judgment No. 186/2014/DS-ST dated March 6, 2014 of the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City on the case of "Dispute over division of common property regarding the purchase of a house at a discounted price" between the plaintiff, Ms. Nguyen Thi H, and the defendant, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L, and other persons with related rights and obligations.
3. Transfer the case file to the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City for retrial in accordance with the provisions of law.

CONTENT OF PRECEDENT

“[1]... Thus, Mr. T is a person with revolutionary contributions, so Military Region 7 considered granting him house number 63, street B above according to the standards of military officers. At the time of Mr. T's death in 1995, he had not completed the procedures to purchase the house at the above price. According to the provisions of Article 188 and Article 634 of the 1995 Civil Code, Mr. T's right to rent or purchase the house at the above price is a property right (valued in money) and is transferred to Mr. T's heirs. Therefore, Ms. H and Mr. T1 are entitled to inherit the right to rent or purchase the house at the above price from Mr. T.”

Major