Separation and
Maintenance Orders (Jersey) Law 1953
A LAW to empower the Petty Debts Court to make
orders with respect to the separation of married persons or civil partners, and
the maintenance of either party to and the children of the marriage or civil
partnership, and for other purposes in connection therewith[1]
Commencement [see endnotes]
1 Interpretation
In this Law unless the context otherwise requires –
“court” means the court known as the “Cour pour le
recouvrement de menues dettes” or the “Petty Debts Court”
constituted in pursuance of the Loi (1891) sur la Cour pour
le recouvrement de menues dettes;
“habitual drunkard” means a person who habitually and
intemperately drinks intoxicating liquor, or habitually takes or uses,
otherwise than in accordance with medical advice, opium or any other dangerous
drug;
“Royal Court” means the Matrimonial Causes Division of
the Royal Court.
2 Power
of court to make order on application of either party[2]
(1) A party to a marriage or
civil partnership shall be entitled to apply to the court for an order under
this Article on the ground that the other party to the marriage or civil
partnership –
(a) has
failed to provide reasonable maintenance for the applicant;
(b) has failed
to provide, or to make a proper contribution towards, reasonable maintenance
for any child of the marriage or civil partnership;
(c) has
behaved in such a way that the applicant cannot reasonably be expected to live
with him or her; or
(d) has
deserted the applicant.[3]
(2) On an application made
under this Article, the court may make an order or orders containing all or any
of the following provisions –
(a) a
provision that the applicant be no longer bound to cohabit with the other party
to the marriage or civil partnership;
(b)
(c) a
provision that one party to the marriage or civil partnership shall pay to the
other party to the marriage or civil partnership personally, or to an officer
of the court or third person on behalf of the other party to the marriage or
civil partnership, such weekly sum (not exceeding such amount as the States
shall by Regulations prescribe) for the maintenance of the other party to the
marriage or civil partnership and any child of the marriage or civil
partnership living with that other party, until the child attains the age
of 16 years, as the court, having regard to the means of both parties to
the marriage or civil partnership, considers reasonable;
(d) where
either or both of the parties to the marriage or civil partnership are tenants
of the matrimonial home or civil partnership home, a provision that either
party to the marriage or civil partnership shall vacate the matrimonial home or
civil partnership home within such period as the court, in all the
circumstances, considers reasonable; and
(e) where
the party required to vacate the matrimonial home or civil partnership home
under sub-paragraph (d) is the sole tenant or the parties to the marriage or
civil partnership are joint tenants of the matrimonial home or civil
partnership home, that, subject to the agreement of the owner of the property,
the rights of tenancy possessed by the vacating party to the marriage or civil
partnership be transferred to the other party to the marriage or civil
partnership.[4]
(3) Where the court makes
an order containing the provision described in paragraph (2)(d), from the
time the order is made, the vacating party to the marriage or civil partnership
shall be deemed to have forfeited all his or her rights as a tenant or as a locataire réfractaire within the meaning of
the Loi (1946) concernant
l’expulsion des locataires réfractaires.[5]
3 Power
of court to refuse order in cases more fit for the Royal Court
If, on an application for an order under Article 2, the court
considers that the matters in question between the parties would be more
conveniently dealt with by the Royal Court, the court may refuse to make an order,
and, in any such case, no appeal shall lie from the decision of the court:
Provided that the Royal Court shall have power, in any proceeding in
that court relating to or comprising the same subject matter as the application
so refused as aforesaid, or any part thereof, to direct the court to rehear and
determine the same.[6]
4 Power
of court to order interim payments where application is adjourned
Where, on the hearing of an application for an order under Article 2,
the application is adjourned for any period exceeding one week, the court may order
that one party to the marriage or civil partnership shall pay to the other
party to the marriage or civil partnership personally, or to an officer of the
court or third person on behalf of the other party to the marriage or civil
partnership, a weekly sum (not exceeding such an amount as might be ordered to
be paid under a final order) for the maintenance of the other party to the
marriage or civil partnership and any children of the marriage or civil
partnership living with the other party until the final determination of the
case:
Provided that the order directing such payment shall not remain in
operation for more than 3 months from the date on which it is made.[7]
5 Power
of court with respect to children on dismissal of application[8]
Where an application for an
order under Article 2 is dismissed at any stage after the commencement of
the hearing, the court may order one party to the marriage or civil partnership
to pay to the other party to the marriage or civil partnership, if any child of
the marriage or civil partnership is living with that other party, or to an
officer of the court or third person on behalf of such other party, such weekly
sum (not exceeding such amounts as the States shall by Regulations prescribe)
for the maintenance of each such child until the child attains the age of 16
years as the court shall, having regard to the means of both parties to the
marriage or civil partnership, consider reasonable.
6 [9]
7 Power
of court to alter, vary or discharge order, or to remit payments
(1) Where an order under Article 2
or 5 has been made, then, on the application either of the husband or of the wife
or, in the case of a civil partnership, either of the civil partners, the court
may, on cause being shown upon fresh evidence to the satisfaction of the court
at any time, alter, vary or discharge any such order, and may, on any such
application, from time to time increase or diminish the amount of any weekly
sum ordered to be paid, so, however, that the same does not in any case exceed
the maximum amount which the court might have ordered to be paid on the making
of the original order:
Provided that fresh evidence shall not be required as a condition of
the exercise of the power of the court to increase or diminish the amount of
any weekly sum ordered to be paid.[10]
(2) On any application for
the alteration, variation or discharge of an order made under Article 2
or 5, or on any proceedings for the recovery of a sum due under such an order,
the court may remit the payment of any such sum or of any part thereof.[11]
8 Continuance
of payments for maintenance of children in certain cases
(1) The power of the court
to vary an order made under Article 2 or 5 shall, notwithstanding anything
in those Articles, include power to vary the order in accordance with the
following provisions of this Article.
(2) If, upon the
application of the party to the marriage or civil partnership having legal
custody of a child for whose maintenance provision is made by the order, it
appears to the court that the child is or will be engaged in a course of
education or training after attaining the age of 16 years and that it is
expedient for that purpose that the payments required by the order should
continue, the court may by order direct that those payments shall continue for
such period after the child attains that age, not exceeding 2 years from the
date of the order, as may be specified in the order.[12]
(3) The period specified in
the order made under this Article may from time to time be extended by a
subsequent order made under this Article, but shall not be extended beyond the
date on which the child attains the age of 21 years.
9 Appeals
(1) Save as is provided by Article 3,
an appeal from any order made under this Law or the refusal to make any such order
shall lie to the Royal Court.
(2) The power to make rules
of court under the Royal Court (Jersey)
Law 1948, shall include a power to make rules regulating practice and
procedure in appeals under this Article.
10 Proceedings
for the recovery of sums due
(1) Notwithstanding any
enactment or rule of law to the contrary, proceedings for the recovery of any
sum payable by virtue of an order made under this Law shall be within the
competence of the court.
(2) Proceedings under this Law
for the maintenance of a child may, if the child or the parent of the child
having care and control of that child is resident outside Jersey, be brought on
behalf of the child by any person who is, by the law of the country or
territory of residence, competent to bring those proceedings.[13]
11 Power
of an officer of court to recover in own name payments in arrear[14]
(1) Where
an order made under this Law requires payment of a weekly sum to an officer of
the court and the payments are at any time in arrear, the said officer shall,
if the person for whose benefit the payment should have been made so requests
in writing, and unless it appears to the said officer that it is unreasonable
in the circumstances to do so, proceed in his or her own name for the recovery
of those sums.
(2) Where
an officer of the court institutes proceedings in his or her own name under paragraph (1),
the person for whose benefit the payment should have been made shall have the
same liability for all the costs properly incurred in and about the proceedings
as if the proceedings had been instituted by him or her.
(3) Nothing
in this Article shall affect any right of a person to proceed in his or her own
name for the recovery of any sum payable to him or her on his or her behalf by
virtue of an order made under this Law.
12 Relief
of collecting officer[15]
Where an order made under
this Law requires payment of a weekly sum to an officer of the court and it is
proved that the person on whose behalf the order was made has persistently
received the payments direct from the person liable to make them, the court
may, on the application of the said officer, vary the order so as to require
the payments to be made direct.
13 Order
revoked ipso facto by continued residence or
resumption of cohabitation and suspended during periods of residence
(1) No order made under
this Law shall be enforceable and no liability shall accrue under this Law
whilst the parties to the marriage or civil partnership reside together, and
any such order shall cease to have effect if for a period of 3 months after it
is made the parties to the marriage or civil partnership continue to reside
together.[16]
(2) Where a party to a
marriage or civil partnership with respect to whom an order under this Law has
been made resumes cohabitation with the other party to the marriage or civil
partnership after living apart from that person the order shall cease to have
effect on the resumption of such cohabitation.[17]
14 Liability
for acts of other party to marriage or civil partnership [18]
So long as a separation under an order made under this Law subsists,
neither party to the marriage or civil partnership shall be liable in respect
of any engagement or agreement entered into by the other party to the marriage or
civil partnership after the separation begins or for any wrongful act or
omission by the other party to the marriage or civil partnership or for any
costs which the other party to the marriage or civil partnership may incur as
plaintiff or defendant:
Provided that where the court has ordered a party to the marriage or
civil partnership to pay any sum for the maintenance of the other party to the
marriage or civil partnership or of any children of the marriage or civil
partnership, and the first mentioned party has not duly paid such sum, that
party shall be liable for necessaries supplied for the use of the other party
to the marriage or civil partnership or of any such children.
15 Citation
This Law may be cited as the Separation and Maintenance Orders
(Jersey) Law 1953.