fc_judgments_version: 42

This data as json

_id _item _version _commit tags date court case-number title citation url counsel timestamp coram html _item_full_hash
42 34 1 1313 
[
    "Family Law \u2013 Procedure \u2013 Extension of time"
]
 2024-05-29 Family Court Divorce No 1991 of 2024 (Summons No 1059 of 2024) WXQ v WXR [2024] SGFC 35 https://www.lawnet.sg:443/lawnet/web/lawnet/free-resources?p_p_id=freeresources_WAR_lawnet3baseportlet&p_p_lifecycle=1&p_p_state=normal&p_p_mode=view&_freeresources_WAR_lawnet3baseportlet_action=openContentPage&_freeresources_WAR_lawnet3baseportlet_docId=%2FJudgment%2F31583-SSP.xml 
[
    "Yeo Poh Choo Lisa (Cecil Law LLC) for the plaintiff",
    "the defendant in person and unrepresented."
]
 2024-06-05T16:00:00Z[GMT] Soh Kian Peng <root><head><title>WXQ v WXR</title></head><content><div class="contentsOfFile"> <h2 align="center" class="title"><span class="caseTitle"> WXQ <em>v</em> WXR </span><br><span class="Citation offhyperlink"><a class="pagecontent" href="javascript:viewPageContent('/Judgment/31583-SSP.xml')">[2024] SGFC 35</a></span></h2><table id="info-table"><tbody><tr class="info-row"><td class="txt-label" style="padding: 4px 0px; white-space: nowrap" valign="top">Case Number</td><td class="info-delim1" style="padding: 4px">:</td><td class="txt-body">Divorce No 1991 of 2024 (Summons No 1059 of 2024)</td></tr><tr class="info-row"><td class="txt-label" style="padding: 4px 0px; white-space: nowrap" valign="top">Decision Date</td><td class="info-delim1" style="padding: 4px">:</td><td class="txt-body">29 May 2024</td></tr><tr class="info-row"><td class="txt-label" style="padding: 4px 0px; white-space: nowrap" valign="top">Tribunal/Court</td><td class="info-delim1" style="padding: 4px">:</td><td class="txt-body">Family Court</td></tr><tr class="info-row"><td class="txt-label" style="padding: 4px 0px; white-space: nowrap" valign="top">Coram</td><td class="info-delim1" style="padding: 4px">:</td><td class="txt-body"> Soh Kian Peng </td></tr><tr class="info-row"><td class="txt-label" style="padding: 4px 0px; white-space: nowrap" valign="top">Counsel Name(s)</td><td class="info-delim1" style="padding: 4px">:</td><td class="txt-body"> Yeo Poh Choo Lisa (Cecil Law LLC) for the plaintiff; the defendant in person and unrepresented. </td></tr><tr class="info-row"><td class="txt-label" style="padding: 4px 0px; white-space: nowrap" valign="top">Parties</td><td class="info-delim1" style="padding: 4px">:</td><td class="txt-body"> WXQ — WXR </td></tr></tbody></table> <p class="txt-body"><span style="font-style:italic">Family Law</span> – <span style="font-style:italic">Procedure</span> – <span style="font-style:italic">Extension of time</span></p> <p></p><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td width="80%"><p class="Judg-Hearing-Date">29 May 2024</p></td><td><p class="Judg-Date-Reserved"></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p> <p class="Judg-Author"> Assistant Registrar Soh Kian Peng:</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_1"></a>1       SUM 1059 of 2024 (“SUM 1059”) was the Husband’s application for an extension of time to file and serve his Defence and Counterclaim.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_2"></a>2       I heard and granted the application on 27 May 2024. I now set out my grounds of decision.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_3"></a>3       The writ was served on the Husband on 7 May 2024. The Husband filed his memorandum of appearance on 10 May 2024. According to the Family Justice Rules 2014, a defendant who has filed a memorandum of appearance must file a defence within 14 days after the expiry of time limited for the filing of the memorandum of appearance. This meant that the Husband had to file his Defence and Counterclaim by 29 May 2024.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_4"></a>4       The Husband, however, had applied for legal aid. He had exhibited, in his affidavit filed in support of SUM 1059, an email from the Legal Aid Bureau, acknowledging that his application for legal aid on 13 May 2024, and giving him an appointment for means testing on 20 May 2024.<span class="FootnoteRef"><a href="#Ftn_1" id="Ftn_1_1"><sup>[note: 1]</sup></a></span></p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_5"></a>5       Because the Husband had applied for legal aid, s 17 of the Legal Aid and Advice Act 1995 (2020 Rev Ed) (“LAA”) was relevant. That provision states:</p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1"> <b>Stay of proceedings upon making of application for legal aid</b> </p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">17.—(1)    Where proceedings have been commenced and any party makes an application for legal aid, <b>the Director must, as soon as practicable after the application is made, notify the other party or each of the other parties, and file with the court in which the proceedings are pending, a notification of the making of the application</b>; and no fee is to be payable in respect of the filing of the notification.</p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">(2)     <b>Where a notification under subsection (1) is filed in respect of any proceedings, the following apply unless the court (before which those proceedings are pending) orders otherwise:</b> </p> <p class="Judg-QuoteList-2">(<b>a</b>)     <b>all steps in those proceedings are stayed for a period of 14 days after the date on which the notification is filed;</b> </p> <p class="Judg-QuoteList-2">(<b>b</b>)     <b>during that period, the time fixed by or under any written law, for doing any act or taking any step in those proceedings, does not run.</b> </p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">(3)    Despite subsection (2), the filing of the notification under subsection (1) does not prevent any of the following:</p> <p class="Judg-QuoteList-2">(a)    the making of an interlocutory order for an injunction, or for the appointment of a receiver, a manager or a receiver and manager;</p> <p class="Judg-QuoteList-2">(b)    the making of an order to prevent the lapse of a caveat against dealings with land;</p> <p class="Judg-QuoteList-2">(c)    the making of any other order which, in the opinion of the court, is necessary to prevent an irremediable injustice;</p> <p class="Judg-QuoteList-2">(d)    the institution or continuance of proceedings to obtain, enforce or otherwise carry into effect an order mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c), unless the court orders otherwise.</p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">(4)     <b>The period mentioned in subsection (2)(a) may be reduced or extended by an order of the court.</b> </p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">[emphasis added]</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_6"></a>6       The purpose of s 17 of the LAA may be gleaned from the Second Reading of the Legal Aid and Advice (Amendment) Bill. As the Senior Minister of State for Law, Mr Edwin Tong had explained (Singapore Parliamentary Debates, <em>Official Report</em> (19 November 2018) vol 94):</p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">I would also like to assure the Member that where an applicant requires aid as a matter of urgency, for example, when an appeal is due to be filed, the Director may issue a Grant of Aid on a provisional basis, if the Director is of the view that the applicant is likely to satisfy the means test and is likely to have a reasonable ground for appealing against the decision.</p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">This Grant is typically valid for a period of three months and can be further extended if necessary. Under the Provisional Grant of Aid, the Bureau may assist the aided person with the filing of the Notice of Appeal. <b>In addition, the Director can also issue a notification under section 17 of the Legal Aid and Advice Act to stay the proceedings for a period of 14 days, whilst this is being done.</b></p> <p class="Judg-Quote-1">[emphasis added]</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_7"></a>7       The purpose of s 17 of the LAA is to ensure that the person who has applied for legal aid whilst there are pending proceedings, is not prejudiced by his application for legal aid. The stay of proceedings effectively ensures that the applicant for legal aid can still comply with the procedural timelines, such as the filing of a notice of appeal, whilst his application for legal aid is being processed.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_8"></a>8       In the present case, although the Husband had applied for legal aid on 13 May 2024, when the matter came up before me for hearing, no notification had been filed.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_9"></a>9       This presented a problem. This stemmed from the fact that the stay under s 17 of the LAA would only take effect when the requisite notification had been filed with the court. Therefore, the crucial event was when that notification was filed. It bears emphasising that s 17 LAA only stipulates that the Director of Legal Aid is to file the notification as soon as practicable – the provision does not set out a deadline by which this must be done.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_10"></a>10     Two scenarios presented themselves. If the Director of Legal Aid filed the notification by the 29<sup>th</sup> of March, which was the deadline for the Husband to file his Defence and Counterclaim, all would be well. The Husband would have an extension of 2 weeks, and this stay could be further extended by an order of court: s 17(4) of the LAA.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_11"></a>11     However, if the notification was filed <em>after</em> the 29<sup>th</sup> of May, the stay would not operate because the Husband would be out of time insofar as the deadlines for him to file and serve his Defence and Counterclaim was concerned. In other words, there was nothing on which the stay under s 17 of the LAA would operate.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_12"></a>12     There was, therefore, some logic to the Husband’s application – one might say he was acting <em>ex abundanti cautela</em> – after all, he did not know when the Director of Legal Aid would file the notification set out in s 17 LAA, or whether he would even be granted legal aid.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_13"></a>13     In the circumstances, I was satisfied that an extension of time, pursuant to Rule 15 of the Family Justice Rules 2014, should be granted. In granting this extension of time, I was also mindful that the Director of Legal Aid could file the notification after I had made the order and the effect this would have pursuant to s 17 of the LAA.</p> <p class="Judg-1"><a id="p1_14"></a>14     I therefore ordered that:</p> <p class="Judg-2"><a id="p1_14-p2_a"></a>(a)     The Husband be granted an extension of time to file his Defence and Counterclaim for:</p> <p class="Judg-3"><a id="p1_14-p2_a-p3_i"></a>(i)       2 weeks till 10 June 2024; or</p> <p class="Judg-3"><a id="p1_14-p2_a-p3_ii"></a>(ii)       To the date that the Director of Legal Aid files the Certificate under s 17 of the Legal Aid and Advice Act,</p> <p class="Judg-2"><a id=""></a>whichever was earlier; and</p> <p class="Judg-2"><a id="p1_14-p2_b"></a>(b)     That the Husband shall have liberty to apply.</p> <hr align="left" size="1" width="33%"><p class="Footnote"><sup><a href="#Ftn_1_1" id="Ftn_1">[note: 1]</a></sup>Husband’s Affidavit filed in support of SUM 1059 of 2024.</p></div></content></root> 454a7e4e2e691528b779ca9c51c35ea8d30ff63c

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