Family law of Singapore

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The Family law of Singapore deals with several family legal issues in Singapore. It deals with adoptions, divorce, children's issues, division of matrimonial property, personal protection orders, probate and maintenance. The family court in Singapore oversees these legal issues. Singapore has two separate and different sets of family law: one for Muslims and the other for everyone else. Family law for Muslims is codified in the Administration of Muslim Law Act (AMLA). Family law for non-Muslims is codified in the Women's Charter. The Family Justice Courts of Singapore (FJC) handles all family cases. [1]

Contents

Divorce

Before a divorce can be granted or considered, the grounds for divorce must be established. The recognised grounds are adultery, desertion and unreasonable behaviour. In addition, one party to the marriage has to be domiciled in Singapore or has been staying there for 3 years before one can file for a divorce in Singapore. This applies to both Singapore citizens or foreigners.

To apply for a divorce, one has to file a writ for divorce, statement of particulars and statement of claim. The reasons for divorce are established in the statement of claim. It is possible to proceed with the divorce proceedings in Singapore without engaging a divorce lawyer. However, the Family Court is not in the position to offer one any advice in this case.

Once divorce commences, any forms of disputes raised by the defendant will result in the case being referred to a marriage counsellor. If counselling fails, the involved parties will have to file affidavits of evidence and the judge will then determine if the case will proceed as contested or uncontested divorce. At this point, the judge will pass an interim judgement with a 3 months waiting period. This is to give the involved parties one last chance of reconciliation. When that does not happen, the ancillary process will start.

Finally, when the judge deems that the marriage has broken down irretrievably, he will grant the divorce. Only after 3 months from the final decision, then both parties are free to remarry. [2]

To establish irretrievable breakdown the divorce applicant has to prove one of the following scenarios:

Probate

Probate is the process of proving and registering the last will or testament of a deceased person in the Family Justice Courts. This legal document expresses the deceased person wishes as to how their property is to be distributed and names an executor who administers the deceased's estate and handles the disposal of their assets and debts. The executor gets this authority by applying to court to obtain a legal document called Grant of Probate. [3]

If a deceased person did not make a Will, then the family members need to apply for Letter of Administration. The person who will an apply is commonly but not always the surviving spouse or eldest child of the deceased. In this case, the assets are distributed according to the Intestate Succession Act. [4]

Adoption

Adoption is a legal process, governed under the Adoption of Children Act (ACA) and the Family Court of Singapore is the authority that decides on adoption applications. The Singapore Adoption of Children Act states:

These rules may be waived if special circumstances justify the adoption. [5]

Related Research Articles

Divorce is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the bonds of matrimony between a married couple under the rule of law of the particular country or state. It can be said to be a legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body. It is the legal process of ending a marriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Will and testament</span> Legal declaration by which a person distributes their property at death

A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property (estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the property until its final distribution. For the distribution (devolution) of property not determined by a will, see inheritance and intestacy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annulment</span> Legal procedure for declaring a marriage null and void

Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almost as if it had never taken place. In legal terminology, an annulment makes a void marriage or a voidable marriage null.

The Parliament of Canada has exclusive legislative authority over marriage and divorce in Canada under section 91(26) of the Constitution Act, 1867. However, section 92(12) of the Constitution Act, 1867 gives the provincial legislatures the power to pass laws regulating the solemnization of marriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Probate</span> Proving of a will

In common law jurisdictions probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased, or whereby the estate is settled according to the laws of intestacy in the state of residence of the deceased at time of death in the absence of a legal will.

The immediate family is a defined group of relations, used in rules or laws to determine which members of a person's family are affected by those rules. It normally includes a person's parents, siblings, spouse, and children. It can contain others connected by birth, adoption, marriage, civil partnership, or cohabitation, such as grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, siblings-in-law, half-siblings, cousins, adopted children, step-parents/step-children, and cohabiting partners. The term close relatives is used similarly.

Australian family law is principally found in the federal Family Law Act 1975 and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Rules 2021 as well as in other laws and the common law and laws of equity, which affect the family and the relationship between those people, including when those relationships end. Most family law is practised in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia and the Family Court of Western Australia. Australia recognises marriages entered into overseas as well as divorces obtained overseas if they were effected in accordance with the laws of that country. Australian marriage and "matrimonial causes" are recognised by sections 51(xxi) and (xxii) of the Constitution of Australia and internationally by marriage law and conventions, such as the Hague Convention on Marriages (1978).

The main family law of Japan is Part IV of Civil Code. The Family Register Act contain provisions relating to the family register and notifications to the public office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Divorce law by country</span> Overview of divorce laws around the world

This article is a general overview of divorce laws around the world. Every nation in the world allows its residents to divorce under some conditions except the Philippines and the Vatican City, an ecclesiastical sovereign city-state, which has no procedure for divorce. In these two countries, laws only allow annulment of marriages.

The matrimonial law of Singapore categorizes marriages contracted in Singapore into two categories: civil marriages and Muslim marriages. The Registry of Marriage (ROM) administers civil marriages in accordance to the Women's Charter, while the Registry of Muslim Marriages (ROMM) administers Muslim marriages in accordance to the Administration of Muslim Law Act (AMLA). All marriages performed in Singapore must be registered with the relevant registry in order to be legally valid.

The Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act (HAMA) was enacted in India in 1956 as part of the Hindu Code Bills. The other legislations enacted during this time include the Hindu Marriage Act (1955), the Hindu Succession Act (1956), and the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act (1956). All of these acts were put forth under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru, and were meant to codify and standardise the current Hindu legal tradition. The Adoptions and Maintenance Act of 1956 dealt specifically with the legal process of adopting children by a Hindu adult, and with the legal obligations of a Hindu to provide "maintenance" to various family members including their wife or parents, and in-laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scots family law</span>

Scots family law is the body of laws in Scotland which regulate certain aspects of adult relationships and the rights and obligations in respect of children.

Inheritance law in Canada is constitutionally a provincial matter. Therefore, the laws governing inheritance in Canada is legislated by each individual province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Divorce law in Sweden</span>

Divorce law in Sweden concerns the dissolution of marriage, child support, alimony, custody and the division of property. Divorce restores the status of married people to individuals, leaving them free to remarry. The divorce laws in Sweden are known to be considerably liberal compared to other jurisdictions.

Divorcein South African law refers to the termination of a marital union, the canceling of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and the dissolving of the bonds of matrimony between a married couple. Divorce is unlike ANNULMENT, which declares the marriage null and void. Divorce requires the sanction of a court in a legal process. The legal process of divorce may also involve issues of alimony, child custody, child support, distribution of property and division of debt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Divorce in England and Wales</span>

In England and Wales, divorce is allowed under the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 on the ground that the marriage has irretrievably broken down without having to prove fault or separation.

Actions for divorce in Scotland may be brought in either the Sheriff Court or the Court of Session. In practice, it is only actions in which unusually large sums of money are in dispute, or with an international element, that are raised in the Court of Session. If, as is usual, there are no contentious issues, it is not necessary to employ a lawyer.

The legal system of the United Arab Emirates is based on the civil law system with influences from Islamic, French, Roman and Egyptian laws.

The second-parent adoption or co-parent adoption is a process by which a partner, who is not biologically related to the child, can adopt their partner's biological or adoptive child without terminating the first legal parent's rights. This process is of interest to many couples, as legal parenthood allows the parent's partner to do things such as: make medical decisions, claim dependency, or gain custody in the event of the death of the biological parent.

The Family Justice Courts (FJC) is a grouping of courts in the judicial system of Singapore that comprises the Youth Courts, Family Courts and High Court. The Youth Courts hear cases related to children and young persons, the Family Courts hear all family proceedings except cases that fall under the Youth Courts, and the Family Division of the High Court primarily hears appeals against the decisions of the Family Courts and the Youth Courts.

References

  1. ↑ "Family Justice Courts". www.familyjusticecourts.gov.sg. Retrieved 2019-08-01.
  2. ↑ Divorce Procedures in Singapore. PKWA Law LLC. Retrieved 6th February 2022.
  3. ↑ "Probate". www.familyjusticecourts.gov.sg. Retrieved 2019-08-01.
  4. ↑ "Grant of Letters of Administration - How much does it cost?". PKWA Law LLC. 2017-08-28. Retrieved 2019-08-01.
  5. ↑ Mahtani, Roshni (2016-01-05). "Adoption In Singapore - Adopt A Child In Singapore | theAsianparent". sg.theasianparent.com. Retrieved 2019-08-01.
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