Recent Work in Singapore Law Reform YEO Tiong Min, Singapore Management University

Singapore Law on Maintenance Singapore law provides for maintenance in these situations: Maintenance of children by (either or both) parents Maintenance of parents by children Maintenance of (ex-)wife by (ex-)husband [Current debate on maintenance by (ex-)wife of (ex-)husband under disability] Singapore private international law views maintenance as judicial relief; thus lex fori always applicable Broad jurisdictional rules (subject to forum non conveniens) Women’s Charter (applies to all persons in, or domiciled in, Singapore) Guardianship of Infants Act (semble: nationality, presence or residence of child) Maintenance of Parents Act (parent domiciled and resident in Singapore)

Foreign Maintenance Orders Enforceability as in personam foreign judgment under very limited circumstances need for order to be for “fixed or ascertainable sum of money” need for order to be “final and conclusive” Can be taken into consideration where fresh maintenance claim is made in a Singapore court, (including ancillary relief sought from the Singapore court after a foreign divorce/nullity decree) Can be enforced under Maintenance Orders (Facilities for Enforcement) Act [MOFEA] or Maintenance Orders (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act [MOREA]

MOFEA/MOREA Original intention for MOREA to replace MOFEA; has not happened Both based on reciprocity (satisfaction of Minister) Both based on the same structure: Singapore can transmit provisional or final maintenance order to reciprocating country for confirmation/enforcement Singapore will register provisional or final maintenance order from reciprocating country

Reciprocating Jurisdictions MOFEA MOREA England Northern Ireland Sri Lanka St Vincent Malaysia Brunei Darussalam States of Jersey States of Guernsey Bailiwick of Guernsey Cook Island (including Niue) and Western Samoa Australia (ACT, NT, NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania) Hong Kong Malawi New Zealand Zambia India (except Jammu and Kashmir) Canada (Alberta, Saskatchewan, North West Territories, Yukon, New Brunswick, British Columbia, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Nunavet Territory) United Kingdom Australia Hong Kong SAR Province of Manitoba

Differences MOFEA MOREA Applies to maintenance orders only Can apply to maintenance and affiliation orders Orders to maintain wife, ex-wife and such other dependent to be maintained under law of the jurisdiction where the order is made Orders to maintain wife/ex-wife/child Singapore court sends order to Minister for transmission once satisfied that maintenance debtor is resident in reciprocating country (court decides residence of debtor) Singapore court sends order to Minister to consider whether to transmit to reciprocating country (Minister decides residence of debtor) Singapore court can vary foreign provisional orders only Singapore court can vary foreign provisional or final orders

Law Reform Report of the Law Reform Committee, Singapore Academy of Law, on Reciprocal Enforcement of Maintenance Orders (2012) [http://www.sal.org.sg/Lists/Law%20Reform%20Committee%20Reports/DispForm.aspx?ID=37] Difficult to obtain reciprocity from civil law countries because of fundamental difference over view of nature of maintenance (judicial relief or substantive obligation) MOFEA/MOREA not used much in practice, but trending up (especially in transmission of Singapore orders) Did not consider issue of international conventions because of potential involvement of additional expenditure of public funds Proposals: Modernise and rationalise MOFEA for Commonwealth countries (continuing on the basis of reciprocity) Update MOREA for non-Commonwealth countries (introduce requirement for international jurisdiction – habitual residence of maintenance creditor or debtor) Currently under consideration by sub-committee: 1996 Hague Convention on Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children [does not apply to maintenance obligations]