The visit to the lawyer (a friend from better days) went a bit differently than I expected.
He said:

"It's not only your money that you want back, but above all your wife!
Winning her back doesn't look easy, given the situation..."

"I'm worried about...this here!"St. Margaret's Hospital
Emergency Room

Berlin, Sept. 9, 1998

Ms. Viola Schneider, née Hammerstein,
Oct. 1, 1960, a resident of...
was admitted at 3 a.m. on the night of Sept. 9, 1998 by the emergency room doctor.

Medical results:

In the case of Ms. Viola Schneider, the following injuries were diagnosed:
- three centimeter long laceration above
the left eye
- palm-sized hematomas on both upper
arms
- strangulation marks on the throat

X-ray examinations revealed:
- fracture of the left forearm
- fracture of the tenth rib on the rightside

Doctor in charge
Dr. Mertens

"Do you realize how many years of prisonPenal Code

Bodily injury is to be prosecuted with a
prison sentence of up to five years or
with a monetary fine.

Commentary: until recently, bodily injury to one's own wife was not treated the same as an attack on another person.

This practice is changing... you're risking for this?"