When aspouse painstakingly obtains a court order for the other spouse to pay wife’s maintenance or for child’s support, only to be met with the payor’s refusal to pay or unilateral deductions of the monthly payment, it seems like the current regime caused the victim more pain to seek repayment.

The payor’s are often not deterred by the current law.

The usual tactic these non-payors engages would be:

• defend endlessly with their excuses not to pay;
• intentionally reduce their work (some even quit their jobs on their own accord), to argue that they have lesser means to pay the ordered sums;
• intentionally jack up their own monthly expenses or spending more for their new families and new children;
• self-declaration bankruptcy;
• file summons to vary the ordered sums downwards (payor could afford legal fees but could not pay the monthly maintenance to their own child(ren);
• the list goes on.

Ironically, the victims see that these non-payors have the means to own a new car and enjoy holidays in exotic destinations- one would wonder how such non-payors would crying poor.

The new process in Maintenance Enforcements aims to simplify applications relating to the non-compliance with maintenance orders and to enhance deterrence against non-compliance for those who can pay maintenance but refuse to pay.

Key changes include:

• NEW Maintenance Enforcement Process; and
• Appointment of Maintenance Enforcement Officers.

REFORMS:

• Lesser court attendances;
• Lesser waiting time;
• Court can deal with non-payor more decisively- Maintenance Officers will be empowered to obtain non-payor’s assets and means directly from government agencies like IRAS, SLA, LTA or CPF Board etc and financial institutions like banks (currently a court order is required to obtain these information and it means more expenses for the victims) and submit the report to the Court;
• Court will channel those who truly cannot pay maintenance to appropriate assistance like job referral programmes;
• Conciliation process rather than mediating with non-payors;
• Non-payors shall be sentenced to imprisonment if Show-Payment Order is breached;
• Injunction order or clawback order when victims or the court officer suspect that the non-payor is intending to dissipate, or has dissipated, assets to frustrate the enforcement of a maintenance order.
  
  If you are the alleged non-payor of a maintenance order where you are GENUINELY having difficulties paying maintenance, or that your financial circumstances have GENUINELY changed subsequent to the divorce order, you may wish to speak to an experience family lawyer from Yeolaw Family Law Specialist at 6220-3400 to work out a more sustainable maintenance order.

There are a lot of factors that one needs to learn when considering divorce proceedings. With that, much of all the necessary information can be easily found via the internet. From the requirements to the process, there are a lot of divorce articles people can look up to understand all of this. However, these could be daunting when going at it alone, most especially what takes place in court. In this article, we will be covering what exactly happens during the divorce proceedings in Singapore. Keep reading to know what to expect in divorce proceedings so you can prepare accordingly.

Overview of Divorce Proceedings in Singapore

Before anything else, when you are considering divorce, it is important to understand the two kinds. Uncontested and contested divorces exist within the divorce. In an uncontested divorce, both parties agree on all details regarding your separation. These include child custody, child support, asset division, and alimony. On the other hand, a contested divorce is when both parties cannot come to an agreement with all of the aforementioned details. This is where the divorce proceedings come in, as the court will need to step in in hopes to help find the best arrangement for you and your spouse.

With that, your divorce proceedings will highly depend on the kind of divorce you will have. Both parties will either have to attend a contested divorce hearing or an uncontested one.

Divorce Proceedings for uncontested divorce

For the divorce to qualify as an uncontested divorce, the defendant:

• Only agrees on the divorce but not on the ancillary matters stated in the Memorandum of Appearance (MOA).
• Failed to file their MOA within 8 days (if located in Singapore) or within 21 days (if the defendant resides outside of Singapore) after receiving the divorce papers.
• Failed to file a defence within 14 days of filing their MOA indicating their intention to contest the divorce action.

At the court hearing, members of the public are not allowed to attend. Parties and their lawyers (if any) are not required to do so as well. During the proceeding, the court will grant an Interim Judgement if the marriage is deemed broken down irretrievably. Parties may then go to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau to extract this.

However, if the defendant agrees on the divorce but not on the ancillary matters, the court will schedule a date for an ancillary matters case conference after the Interim Judgment is granted.

On the other hand, if the defendant fails to file their MOA or defence within the deadline, parties will have to wait for 3 months from the date when the court grants the Interim Judgment to extract the Certificate of Final Judgment.

Extracting the Certificate of Final Judgment finalises and completes the divorce proceedings.

Divorce Proceedings for contested divorce

In a contested divorce , the court may require parties (or their lawyers, if any) to attend a court session. This is known as a case conference before a date for the contested divorce hearing is scheduled. 

Only those directly involved in the matter can attend a case conference. If members of each party have a lawyer, they will not be required to attend the case conference.

The hearing will take place after the conference. While it is important to understand that attendance is a must, it is also vital to arrive early, dress appropriately and behave in a courteous manner. If a party does not attend without a valid reason, the court may proceed.

With that, the divorce proceedings may take one or several days, depending on the number of witnesses and the complexity of the case. Once the parties have taken the stand and presented their evidence, the court will grant the Interim Judgement. Similarly, parties may extract this at the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau. Once accomplished, an ancillary matters hearing will be scheduled and the issues discussed will be heard during the divorce proceedings at court.   

Handle Your Divorce Proceedings With Yeolaw

Divorce is never an easy ordeal to go through. Whether it’s made a little bit easier as an uncontested divorce or through the difficulties of a contested one, all the processes can be a lot for one person.  At Yeolaw, we are ready to guide you to make this emotional period as smooth and hassle-free as possible. Book a free consultation with us today via +65 6220 3400 or visit our website and start your divorce journey together.