Family Justice Act 2014 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 4 · Jurisdiction
29C. Satisfaction of judgments and orders for payment of money
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Where a judgment or an order is made, by a Family Court in any family proceedings, under which any sum of money is payable (whether by way of satisfaction of the claim or counterclaim in the proceedings or by way of costs or otherwise), the Family Court may, as it thinks fit, order the money to be paid either —
family proceedings
“family proceedings” means —(a)any civil proceedings under section 53 of the Administration of Muslim Law Act 1966;(b)any civil proceedings under the Adoption of Children Act 1939;(c)any civil proceedings under the Guardianship of Infants Act 1934;(d)any civil proceedings under the Inheritance (Family Provision) Act 1966;(e)any civil proceedings under the International Child Abduction Act 2010;(f)any civil proceedings for the distribution of an intestate estate in accordance with the Intestate Succession Act 1967;(g)any civil proceedings under the Legitimacy Act 1934;(h)any civil proceedings under section 10 of the Maintenance of Parents Act 1995;(i) (j)any civil proceedings under the Maintenance Orders (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act 1975;(k)any civil proceedings under the Mental Capacity Act 2008;(l)any civil proceedings under the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) Act 2008;(m)any civil proceedings under the Status of Children (Assisted Reproduction Technology) Act 2013;(n)any civil proceedings under section 17A(2) of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1969;(o)any civil proceedings under the Voluntary Sterilisation Act 1974;(oa)any civil or quasi‑criminal proceedings under the Vulnerable Adults Act 2018;(p)any civil or quasi-criminal proceedings under the Women’s Charter 1961;(q)on or after 1 January 2015, any civil proceedings under the Probate and Administration Act 1934; and(r)on or after 1 December 2016, any civil proceedings under the Wills Act 1838;
in a lump sum, whether immediately or within a period fixed by the Family Court; or
by instalments payable at the times fixed by the Family Court.
If at any time it appears to the satisfaction of a Family Court that any party to any family proceedings is unable from any cause to pay any sum recovered against the party (whether by way of satisfaction of the claim or counterclaim in the proceedings or by way of costs or otherwise) or any instalment of the sum, the Family Court may, in its discretion, suspend or stay any judgment or order given or made in the proceedings —
for any time and on any terms that the Family Court thinks fit; and
from time to time until it appears that the cause of inability has ceased.
Where an order for payment by instalments is made, no enforcement (except under any maintenance enforcement proceedings) may issue except with the permission of the Family Court.
This section does not apply to —
any sum payable (whether by way of satisfaction of the claim or counterclaim in the proceedings or by way of costs or otherwise) under any judgment or order made by a Family Court before the date of commencement of section 8 of the Family Justice Reform Act 2023;
any monthly or periodical sum ordered to be paid under a maintenance order; or
any maintenance ordered to be paid in maintenance enforcement proceedings.
In subsection (4) —
“maintenance enforcement proceedings” means the proceedings in court arising from any application under the Women’s Charter 1961 to enforce any payment or payments required to be made under a maintenance order, including any appeal against any decision made by the court on the application;
“maintenance order” means —
an order for maintenance made by the Syariah Court under the Administration of Muslim Law Act 1966;
an order for the payment of money in respect of the maintenance of an infant made under the Guardianship of Infants Act 1934;
an order for maintenance made under the Maintenance of Parents Act 1995;
a maintenance order, as defined in section 2 of the Maintenance Orders (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act 1975, which is registered or confirmed by the court under that Act;
an order for the payment of monthly sums or a lump sum for the maintenance of a wife, an incapacitated husband or a child, made or deemed to be made by a court under Part 8 of the Women’s Charter 1961; or
an order for the payment of monthly or periodical sums or a lump sum by way of maintenance or alimony to a wife or former wife or an incapacitated husband or incapacitated former husband, or by way of maintenance for the benefit of any child, under Part 10 of the Women’s Charter 1961.