The Gazette 1996

GAZETTE

JULY 1996

Family Law Act 1995

12 allows the Court to make an Order providing for the payment to the other spouse or dependent member of the family of a benefit consisting in whole or in part of a retirement benefit which is accrued at the time of the making of the order. Such a Pension Adjustment Order shall specify the period of reckonable service of the member spouse to be taken into account and the percentage of the retirement accrued during that period which is to be paid to the Applicant spouse. In addition the Court may in relation to a contingent benefit (death in service benefit) make an order providing payment to the other spouse and a dependant member of the family the whole or part of any contingent benefit that is payable. Section 12 of the 1995 Act is a complex section running to five pages. Sub Sections provide that the Trustees of Pension Schemes must be notified by an Applicant spouse if it is proposed to seek a Pension Adjustment Order and the Court shall have regard to any representations that the Trustees may make. Guidelines are to be published by the Pensions Board and are awaited with interest. Section 13 is a further relieving Section which provides that the Court can make an Order directing the Trustees of a Pension Scheme to disregard the separation of the spouses as a ground for disqualifying the other spouse from receipt of a benefit which under the rules of the scheme requires the spouses to be residing together. 2. Part III of the 1995 Act provides for relief orders to be made by the Court after a divorce or separation is granted outside the State. Up to now many ex-spouses have found it difficult to enforce ancillary relief orders granted by Courts in other jurisdictions and have been unable

by Muriel Walls* The Family Law Act 1995 comes into operation on 1 August 1996 and it is important that all practitioners are familiar with its provisions. The main purposes of the Act are:- 1. To allow the Court make further provision in proceedings for Judicial Separation; 2. To enable certain Orders be made by the Court after a divorce or separation is granted outside the State; 3. To enable the Court make declarations on marital status; 4. To make new rules on the age and procedures for marriage; 5. To make miscellaneous tax and other relieving provisions particularly in relation to the Family Home Protection Act 1976. 1. Part II of the 1989 Act which provides for the making of ancillary relief orders on separation is repealed and is substituted by Part II of the Family Law Act 1995. Ancillary relief orders for periodical payment, secured periodical payment, lump sum payment, property adjustment order and orders extinguishing Succession Act Rights are all repeated in the 1995 Act however, two new ancillary relief orders can now be made by the Court. Section 11 provides for the making of a financial compensation order. The Court on granting a Decree of Judicial Separation or at any time thereafter if it considers that the financial security of the Applicant spouse so requires or if the Applicant spouse needs to be compensated for loss of pension benefits may order the other spouse to:

Muriel Walls (i) affect a life insurance policy for the benefit of the other spouse; (ii) assign the benefit of an existing policy of insurance to the other spouse; (iii) Order that the payment on the policy/ies are made by the spouse. There are specific cessation provisions in relation to financial compensation orders. The order shall cease to have effect on the remarriage or death of the Applicant spouse in so far as it relates to the Applicant and the Court shall not make such a financial compensation order if the spouse who is applying for the order has remarried. Although on separation many spouses have arranged life insurance for their mutual benefit or for the benefit of one of them, up to now the Court had no power to make an order directing the other spouse to do so. The other new ancillary relief order that can be made on granting a Decree of Judicial Separation is a pension Adjustment Order. Section

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