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

2. 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)

3. 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]

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. Law Reform
Report of the Law Reform Committee, Singapore Academy of Law, on Reciprocal Enforcement of Maintenance Orders (2012) [
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]