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	Statutes of Northern Ireland
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MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - LONG TITLE

An Act to facilitate the enforcement in Ireland of Maintenance
Orders made in other parts of His Majesty's Dominions and
Protectorates and vice versa.{1}
[16th August 1920]

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 1
Enforcement in Ireland of maintenance orders made in His Majesty's
dominions outside the United Kingdom.

1.(1) Where a maintenance order has, whether before or after the
passing of this Act, been made against any person by any court in
any part of His Majesty's dominions outside the United Kingdom to
which this Act extends, and a certified copy of the order has been
transmitted by the governor of that part of His Majesty's dominions
to the Secretary of State, the Secretary of State shall send a
copy of the order to the prescribed officer of a court in...
Ireland for registration; and on receipt thereof the order shall be
registered in the prescribed manner, and shall, from the date of
such registration, be of the same force and effect, and, subject to
the provisions of this Act, all proceedings may be taken on such
order as if it had been an order originally obtained in the court
in which it is so registered, and that court shall have power to
enforce the order accordingly.

(2) The court in which an order is to be so registered as
aforesaid shall, if the court by which the order was made was a
court of superior jurisdiction, be... the King's Bench Division
(Matrimonial) of the High Court of Justice in Ireland, and, if the
court was not a court of superior jurisdiction, be a court of
summary jurisdiction.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 2
Transmission of maintenance orders made in Ireland.

2. Where a court in... Ireland has, whether before or after the
commencement of this Act, made a maintenance order against any
person, and it is proved to that court that the person against
whom the order was made is resident in some part of His Majesty's
dominions outside the United Kingdom to which this Act extends, the
court shall send to the Secretary of State for transmission to the
governor of that part of His Majesty's dominions a certified copy
of the order.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 3
Power to make provisional orders of maintenance against persons
resident in His Majesty's dominions outside the United Kingdom.

3.(1) Where an application is made to a court of summary
jurisdiction in... Ireland for a maintenance order against any
person, and it is proved that that person is resident in a part
of His Majesty's dominions outside the United Kingdom to which this
Act extends, the court may, in the absence of that person, if
after hearing the evidence it is satisfied of the justice of the
application, make any such order as it might have made if a
summons had been duly served on that person and he had failed to
appear at the hearing, but in such case the order shall be
provisional only, and shall have no effect unless and until
confirmed by a competent court in such part of His Majesty's
dominions as aforesaid.

(2) The evidence of any witness who is examined on any such
application shall be put into writing, and such deposition shall be
read over to and signed by him.

(3) Where such an order is made, the court shall send to the
Secretary of State for transmission to the governor of the part of
His Majesty's dominions in which the person against whom the order
is made is alleged to reside the depositions so taken and a
certified copy of the order, together with a statement of the
grounds on which the making of the order might have been opposed
if the person against whom the order is made had been duly served
with a summons and had appeared at the hearing, and such
information as the court possesses for facilitating the identification
of that person, and ascertaining his whereabouts.

(4) Where any such provisional order has come before a court in a
part of His Majesty's dominions outside the United Kingdom to which
this Act extends for confirmation, and the order has by that court
been remitted to the court of summary jurisdiction which made the
order for the purpose of taking further evidence, that court or any
other court of summary jurisdiction sitting and acting for the same
place shall, after giving the prescribed notice, proceed to take the
evidence in like manner and subject to the like conditions as the
evidence in support of the original application.

If upon the hearing of such evidence it appears to the court that
the order ought not to have been made, the court may rescind the
order, but in any other case the depositions shall be sent to the
Secretary of State and dealt with in like manner as the original
depositions.

(5) The confirmation of an order made under this section shall not
affect any power of a court of summary jurisdiction to vary or
rescind that order: Provided that on the making of a varying or
rescinding order the court shall send a certified copy thereof to
the Secretary of State for transmission to the governor of the part
of His Majesty's dominions in which the original order was
confirmed, and that in the case of an order varying the original
order the order shall not have any effect unless and until
confirmed in like manner as the original order.

(6) The applicant shall have the same right of appeal, if any,
against a refusal to make a provisional order as he would have had
against a refusal to make the order had a summons been duly served
on the person against whom the order is sought to be made.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 4
Power of court of summary jurisdiction to confirm maintenance order
made out of the United Kingdom.

4.(1) Where a maintenance order has been made by a court in a
part of His Majesty's dominions outside the United Kingdom to which
this Act extends, and the order is provisional only and has no
effect unless and until confirmed by a court of summary jurisdiction
in... Ireland, and a certified copy of the order, together with the
depositions of witnesses and a statement of the grounds on which
the order might have been opposed has been transmitted to the
Secretary of State, and it appears to the Secretary of State that
the person against whom the order was made is resident in...
Ireland, the Secretary of State may send the said documents to the
prescribed officer of a court of summary jurisdiction, with a
requisition that a summons be issued calling upon the person to
show cause why that order should not be confirmed, and upon receipt
of such documents and requisition the court shall issue such a
summons and cause it to be served upon such person.

(2) A summons so issued may be served in... Ireland in the same
manner as if it had been originally issued or subsequently endorsed
by a court of summary jurisdiction having jurisdiction in the place
where the person happens to be.

(3) At the hearing it shall be open to the person on whom the
summons was served to raise any defence which he might have raised
in the original proceedings had he been a party thereto, but no
other defence, and the certificate from the court which made the
provisional order stating the grounds on which the making of the
order might have been opposed if the person against whom the order
was made had been a party to the proceedings shall be conclusive
evidence that those grounds are grounds on which objection may be
taken.

(4) If at the hearing the person served with the summons does not
appear or, on appearing, fails to satisfy the court that the order
ought not to be confirmed, the court may confirm the order either
without modification or with such modifications as to the court
after hearing the evidence may seem just.

(5) If the person against whom the summons was issued appears at
the hearing and satisfies the court that for the purpose of any
defence it is necessary to remit the case to the court which made
the provisional order for the taking of any further evidence, the
court may so remit the case and adjourn the proceedings for the
purpose.

(6) Where a provisional order has been confirmed under this section,
it may be varied or rescinded in like manner as if it had
originally been made by the confirming court, and where on an
application for rescission or variation the court is satisfied that
it is necessary to remit the case to the court which made the
order for the purpose of taking any further evidence, the court may
so remit the case and adjourn the proceedings for the purpose.

(7) Where an order has been so confirmed, the person bound thereby
shall have the same right of appeal, if any, against the
confirmation of the order as he would have had against the making
of the order had the order been an order made by the court
confirming the order.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 5
Power of Secretary of State to make regulations for facilitating
communications between courts.

5. The Secretary of State may make regulations as to the manner in
which a case can be remitted by a court authorised to confirm a
provisional order to the court which made the provisional order, and
generally for facilitating communications between such courts.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 6
Mode of enforcing orders.

6.(1) A court of summary jurisdiction in which an order has been
registered under this Act or by which an order has been confirmed
under this Act, and the officers of such court, shall take all
such steps for enforcing the order as may be prescribed.

(2) Every such order shall be enforceable in like manner as if the
order were for the payment of a civil debt recoverable summarily:

Provided that, if the order is of such a nature that if made by
the court in which it is so registered, or by which it is so
confirmed, it would be enforceable in like manner as an order of
affiliation, the order shall be so enforceable.

(3) A warrant of distress or commitment issued by a court of
summary jurisdiction for the purpose of enforcing any order so
registered or confirmed may be executed in any part of the United
Kingdom in the same manner as if the warrant had been originally
issued or subsequently endorsed by a court of summary jurisdiction
having jurisdiction in the place where the warrant is executed.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 7
Application of Summary Jurisdiction Acts.

7. The Summary Jurisdiction Acts shall apply to proceedings before
courts of summary jurisdiction under this Act in like manner as
they apply to proceedings under those Acts....

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 8
Proof of documents signed by officers of court.

8. Any document purporting to be signed by a judge or officer of
a court outside the United Kingdom shall, until the contrary is
proved, be deemed to have been so signed without proof of the
signature or judicial or official character of the person appearing
to have signed it, and the officer of a court by whom a document
is signed shall, until the contrary is proved, be deemed to have
been the proper officer of the court to sign the document.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 9
Depositions to be evidence.

9. Depositions taken in a court in a part of His Majesty's
dominions outside the United Kingdom to which this Act extends for
the purposes of this Act, may be received in evidence in
proceedings before courts of summary jurisdiction under this Act.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 10
Interpretation.

10. For the purposes of this Act, the expression "maintenance order"
means an order other than an order of affiliation for the
periodical payment of sums of money towards the maintenance of the
wife or other dependants of the person against whom the order is
made, and the expression "dependants" means such persons as that
person is, according to the law in force in the part of His
Majesty's dominions in which the maintenance order was made, liable
to maintain; the expression "certified copy" in relation to an order
of a court means a copy of the order certified by the proper
officer of the court to be a true copy, and the expression
"prescribed" means prescribed by rules of court.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 11
Application to Ireland.

11. In the application of this Act to Ireland the following
modifications shall be made:

(a)The Lord Chancellor of Ireland may make rules regulating the
procedure of courts of summary jurisdiction under this Act, and
other matters incidental thereto:

(b)Orders intended to be registered or confirmed in Ireland shall be
transmitted by the Secretary of State to the prescribed officer of
a court in Ireland through the Lord Chancellor of Ireland:

(c)The expression "maintenance order" includes an order or decree for
the recovery or repayment of the cost of relief or maintenance made
by virtue of the provisions of the Poor Relief (Ireland) Acts, 1839
to 1914.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 12
Extent of Act.

12.(1) Where His Majesty is satisfied that reciprocal provisions have
been made by the legislature of any part of His Majesty's dominions
outside the United Kingdom for the enforcement within that part of
maintenance orders made by courts within England and Ireland, His
Majesty may by Order in Council extend this Act to that part, and
thereupon that part shall become a part of His Majesty's dominions
to which this Act extends.

(2) His Majesty may by Order in Council extend this Act to any
British protectorate, and where so extended this Act shall apply as
if any such protectorate was a part of His Majesty's dominions to
which this Act extends.

MAINTENANCE ORDERS (FACILITIES FOR ENFORCEMENT) ACT 1920 - SECT 13
Short title.

13. This Act may be cited as the Maintenance Orders (Facilities for
Enforcement) Act, 1920.