Part 7: Judge-Led Approach in Resolving Family Disputes

7A: Case Management, Mediation and Counselling 78. Judicial case management 79. Case assignment 80. Case conferences 81. Powers of the Court to direct mediation and / or counselling 82. Mandatory counselling and mediation 83. Mediation conducted by the Court 84. Court-ordered private mediation 85. Counselling 7B: Family Neutral Evaluation 86. Family Neutral Evaluation process 87. Confidentiality 7C: Guidance on Direct Judicial Communications 88. Guidance on direct judicial communications in international family proceedings affecting children 7D: Amendment of Documents 89. Amendment of originating application for adoption of child 90. Amendment of documents

The overarching purpose of case management is to facilitate the resolution of disputes in accordance with the objectives set out in Part 1, Rule 4(2) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 (“Objectives”).

Parties to a proceeding and their solicitors are required to conduct all proceedings in a way that is consistent with the overarching purpose.

To achieve the overarching purpose set out in paragraph 78(1), each case commenced in the Family Justice Courts may be allocated to a Judge (“the assigned Judge”) who will be responsible for managing the case until final disposition.

In deciding whether to allocate a case pursuant to sub-paragraph (1), the matters to be considered may include the following:

whether the main issues relate to custody, care and control and access of child(ren); (b) whether the main issues involve abduction of a child, relocation issues and issues of appropriate jurisdiction; (c) whether the main issues are financial in nature (for e.g. ascertainment of the value and extent of the matrimonial assets amenable for division); (d) whether the main issues relate to allegations of violence; and (e) whether there are multiple pending court proceedings commenced in the Family Justice Courts by the parties.

The assigned Judge will make orders about the way in which the case is to be managed or prepared for hearing including referrals to mediation or other modes of alternative dispute resolution.

The parties and their solicitors may expect the assigned Judge to have regard to:

identifying and narrowing the issues in dispute as early as possible; (b) ascertaining the degree of difficulty or complexity of the issues determined to be in dispute; (c) setting a hearing date early; (d) minimising unnecessary interlocutory steps by permitting only interlocutory steps that are directed to identifying, narrowing or resolving the issues really in dispute between the parties; and (e) exploring options for alternative dispute resolution as early as practicable.

The parties and their solicitors are obliged to cooperate with and assist the Court in achieving the overarching purpose and, in particular, in identifying the real issues in dispute as early as possible and in dealing with those issues efficiently.

Interlocutory applications

Where parties have included a claim for an interlocutory relief, that claim may be heard on the return date fixed by the assigned Judge or a date for its later hearing may be set on the return date and directions for preparations made.

If a claim for interlocutory relief is to be contested, parties or their solicitors shall inform the assigned Judge as soon as possible and give an estimate of the likely hearing time.

Parties wishing to make urgent applications shall contact the Court and inform of the urgency to be placed before the assigned Judge. If parties are requesting the Court to summarily deal with any urgent or time-sensitive issues which affect the welfare of the minor child / children in the proceedings pursuant to Part 8, Rule 5(2) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, paragraph 80(4) of these Practice Directions applies.

Where there is an application for disclosure, parties and solicitors may expect that, with a view to eliminating or reducing the burden of disclosure, the assigned Judge:

will fashion any order for disclosure to suit the issues in a particular case; and (b) will expect the following questions to be answered: (i) Does disclosure facilitate the resolution of the proceedings in accordance with the Objectives? (ii) Can the purpose(s) of seeking disclosure be achieved by: (A) a means less expensive than disclosure? (B) disclosure only in relation to particular issues? (iii) Where there are many documents, should disclosure be given in a non-standard form, e.g. initially on a limited basis, with liberty to apply later for particular disclosure or disclosure on a broader basis? (iv) Whether disclosure should be given by the use of categories or by electronic format or in accordance with a disclosure plan? (v) Should disclosure be given by categories and by a general description rather than by identification of individual documents?

In determining whether to make any order for disclosure, the Court will have regard to the issues in the case and the order in which they are likely to be resolved, the resources and circumstances of the parties, the likely benefit of disclosure, the likely cost of disclosure and whether that cost is proportionate to the nature and complexity of the proceedings.

Communications with Court

It is never appropriate to contact the assigned Judge directly. The assigned Judge will inform parties and their solicitors of preferred modes of communication but in all cases, the general approach is through emails to the generic email address of the Family Justice Courts.

All communications with the Court shall be confined to routine procedural, administrative or procedural matters. Communications must never, unless this is invited, contain information or allegations which are material to the substantive issues in the litigation or which are intended to influence any decision of substance to be made by the assigned Judge.

At the case conference, in addition to the matters set out in Part 8, Rule 5 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the matters to be considered may include the following, where applicable:

the service of documents; (b) any urgent or time-sensitive issues which affect the welfare of the minor child / children in the proceedings; (c) the dates of the mediation and counselling sessions; (d) directions on the conduct of mediation and counselling; (e) the witnesses who will be called and whether they need interpretation; (f) the filing of affidavits, reports, summonses and any other necessary documents; (g) the necessity (if any) for an order for the Central Provident Fund (“CPF”) Board to furnish information relating to the utilisation of CPF monies or CPF account balances where there is a claim for the division of a matrimonial property or CPF-related assets; (h) the necessity (if any) to transfer the proceedings to the Family Division of the High Court for hearing and determination. In determining whether to transfer the case to the Family Division of the High Court, the Family Court will take into account whether: (i) there is an important question of law; (ii) the matter is a test case; and / or (iii) there is any other sufficient reason to transfer the proceedings; (i) the value of the property in question or matrimonial assets. Generally, in a non-probate case where the property in question or matrimonial assets are asserted by any party to the proceedings to be worth a gross value of S$5 million or more, the matter will be transferred to the Family Division of the High Court for hearing and determination; (j) the number of days required for the hearing and the fixing of hearing dates; and (k) the administrative arrangements for the next hearing (e.g. whether interpreters are required, etc.).

The principal solicitors having conduct of the case are to personally attend the case conference. They are expected to be thoroughly prepared to discuss all relevant matters as the Registrar conducting the case conference will take a holistic approach to the case and consider all relevant matters relating to the case.

Solicitors must ensure that their clients are fully informed of the option of using alternative dispute resolution before attending the case conference. They are expected to advise their clients and to take instructions on the desirability of referring the dispute for mediation and / or counselling.

Except in cases of extreme urgency or with the permission of the Court, a party who intends to request the Court to summarily deal with any urgent or time-sensitive issues which affect the welfare of the minor child / children in the proceedings pursuant to Part 8, Rule 5(2) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, shall give a minimum of 48 hours’ notice to the Court and all other concerned parties (“the other parties”) before the case conference. The notice should inform the Court and the other parties of the request, the order(s) sought and the supporting reasons. The notice to the other parties may be given by way of email or in cases of extreme urgency, orally by telephone. The notice to the Court shall be given by way of letter filed through the Electronic Filing Service.

In any proceedings before the Court, it may direct that parties attend mediation and / or counselling (pursuant to section 139H, 139I or 139J of the Women’s Charter 1961 or section 26(9) of the Family Justice Act 2014) to encourage parties to resolve the matter amicably and assist parties in reaching an agreement or to narrow the issues in contention.

It is the professional duty of solicitors to advise their clients about mediation. Mediation shall be considered at the earliest possible stage in order to facilitate an amicable resolution of the dispute.

The types of mediation and / or counselling which the Court may direct are as follows:

Type of mediation / counsellingCriteriaWho conducts the mediation / counselling?For more details, refer to:1.Mandatory counselling and mediation pursuant to section 139I of the Women’s Charter 1961 Divorcing parties with at least one child below the age of 21 yearsFamily Justice CourtsParagraphs 82, 83 and 852.Court-ordered private mediation(a) Proceedings (including divorce proceedings and applications pursuant to section 121B of the Women’s Charter 1961) where: (i) there is a contested issue relating to assets where the gross value of all known assets is S$2 million or above; and (ii) there are no contested child issues (i.e. disputes relating to the custody, care and control of and / or access to any child) (b) Applications under the International Child Abduction Act 2010 Private mediatorParagraph 843.All other Court-conducted mediationsAll other proceedings, as directed by the CourtFamily Justice CourtsParagraph 834.Court-ordered counselling (excluding mandatory counselling pursuant to section 139I of the Women’s Charter 1961)As directed by the CourtFamily Justice CourtsParagraph 85

This paragraph applies to mandatory counselling and mediation for divorcing parents with at least one child below the age of 21 years.

Notice(s) of attendance for mandatory counselling and / or mediation with location details will be sent to the applicant and respondent in the divorce proceedings. Attendance by the parties is compulsory. Attendance by the parties’ respective solicitors, if any, is required only when specifically stated in the notice.

All parties together with their solicitors (if any) are required to attend a Family Dispute Resolution Conference (“FDR Conference”) for a preliminary discussion of the issues relating to the child or children of the marriage. The purpose is to crystallise the issues relating to the child or children and to agree on mutually convenient dates for the parties to attend counselling / mediation. Solicitors and parties are expected to come prepared to discuss all issues relating to or impacting the child or children. Any unresolved issue relating to the divorce (including any ancillary issues such as the question of maintenance or the division of matrimonial assets) may also be discussed.

At the FDR Conference, directions may be given in relation to the filing and exchange of relevant documents and / or proposals and a mediation date will be given if appropriate for the case. It is important that parties attend on the dates given and use the opportunity to discuss and resolve the issues with the help of a Judge-Mediator and / or Court Family Specialist (i.e. court counsellor).

After the FDR Conference, the parties alone will attend an Intake and Assessment Session with their assigned Court Family Specialist.

Subsequent counselling sessions, involving only the parties, may be fixed by the assigned Court Family Specialist and the parties.

Under section 139I(3) of the Women’s Charter 1961, the Court may dispense with the attendance of the parties at mediation / counselling if it deems that it is not in the interest of the parties concerned to do so (e.g. where family violence has been committed or where Child Protection Services is involved in the case).

Solicitors must advise their client of the consequences of non-attendance under section 139I(5) of the Women’s Charter 1961.

This paragraph applies to mediations conducted by the Court, whether child-related or otherwise.

Parties and their solicitors (if any) must personally attend all mediation sessions.

The parties and their solicitors (if any) are to prepare a Summary for Mediation in the prescribed format in Form 83 of Appendix A of these Practice Directions prior to the mediation for submission and discussion during the mediation, together with all relevant documents as may be directed by the Court.

Where interim judgment or judgment of judicial separation has not been granted, any agreement reached will be formally recorded by the Judge-Mediator and parties will be directed to request for an uncontested hearing date.

For all other proceedings not covered by sub-paragraph (4), any agreement reached will be recorded as a consent order by the Judge-Mediator at a mediation session or any other Judge upon the confirmation of the terms by the parties and / or solicitors

Mediation will be conducted on a without prejudice basis. All communications made in the course of mediation will be treated in strict confidence and will not be admissible in any court unless otherwise stipulated by law. If the dispute is not resolved at the mediation session, the Judge-Mediator or any other Judge will give the necessary directions to enable the case to proceed to trial, and the case will be heard by a Judge other than the Judge-Mediator conducting the mediation.

Where there is a disagreement between the parties on the terms of the agreement which were recorded at mediation, either party may write in for a clarification before the Judge-Mediator.

This paragraph applies to private mediations ordered by the Court.

The Registrar or the Judge may order that parties in proceedings which meet the criteria in paragraph 81(3)(2) attend private mediation conducted, at parties’ election, by the Singapore Mediation Centre or the Law Society Mediation Scheme (collectively referred to as “Assigned Private Mediator(s)”), unless parties have agreed upon a mediator (“Agreed Private Mediator”). The Registrar or the Judge may also make any orders necessary, including any orders relating to the choice of mediator (if parties are unable to agree) and pertaining to the payment for the mediation and its related fees.

For mediations conducted by the Assigned Private Mediator(s), the parties and / or solicitors shall provide the Registrar or the Judge with the necessary information for the Assigned Private Mediator(s) to contact them to arrange for the mediation. The Registrar or the Judge will give directions and timelines for parties to agree on a mediation date and to exchange case information, documents and mediation briefs. The Registrar or the Judge will fix a return date for parties and / or solicitors to update the Court on the outcome of the private mediation.

For mediations conducted by the Agreed Private Mediator(s), the parties or their solicitors shall inform the Registrar or the Judge of the identity of their Agreed Private Mediator(s), the management of the mediation and the agreed date for mediation. The Registrar or Judge may make any order necessary for the timely and efficacious disposal of the case, including fixing return dates for the parties or their solicitors to update the Court, and / or re-directing the case to the Assigned Private Mediator(s).

Parties and their solicitors (if any) must personally attend all mediation sessions, unless otherwise stated by the private mediator.

Where interim judgment or judgment of judicial separation has not been granted, if the dispute is resolved at private mediation, the parties and / or solicitors shall inform the Court accordingly on the return date pursuant to sub-paragraph (3) or (4), as the case may be, and the parties will be directed to request for an uncontested hearing date.

For all other proceedings not covered by sub-paragraph (6), if the dispute is resolved at private mediation, the parties and / or solicitors may apply for the grant of a consent order in accordance with paragraph 129 of these Practice Directions.

If the dispute is not resolved at the private mediation, the Registrar or the Judge will give the necessary directions at the return date to enable the case to proceed accordingly.

This paragraph applies to counselling sessions directed by the Court.

Counselling is conducted to help parties manage difficult emotions related to a divorce or any other familial relationship, and facilitating a parenting agreement that preserves significant relationships and supports children’s psychological adjustment to the separation. Counselling may also be directed after orders are made to assist with the emotional aspects of dealing with the outcome of the orders, particularly in cases involving the relocation of a child.

Solicitors are not expected to attend any counselling sessions directed by the Court. However, solicitors may attend a counselling session if the assigned counsellor considers it appropriate.

The counsellor may request that the child be included in the counselling sessions, either alone or together with the parents, depending on the case, if the counsellor is of the view that it would be in the interest of the child to be involved.

Any request for a change or vacation of the counselling appointment shall be made at least 3 working days before the appointed date.

Counselling sessions will be conducted on a without prejudice basis. Any consensus reached during counselling sessions will be recorded as a draft agreement. A copy of the draft agreement, recorded by the counsellor and signed by the parties, will be given to the parties to seek further advice from their respective solicitors (if any). The draft agreement and all communications made in the course of counselling will be treated in strict confidence and shall not be admissible in any court.

FNE is an alternative dispute resolution process that is available at the Family Dispute Resolution Division (“FDR”) to parties in suitable divorce cases for contested financial issues (such as maintenance and the division of matrimonial assets). With FNE, parties will be able to obtain an early and objective evaluation of their case from a neutral evaluator with subject matter expertise (“Evaluator”). More information on the criteria for FNE and its process is set out at the Singapore Courts website at www.judiciary.gov.sg.

Recommendation for Family Neutral Evaluation (“FNE”)

Pursuant to Part 8, Rule 2(1) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, if a Judge / mediator having conduct of a divorce case considers the case and its contested financial issues suitable for FNE, the parties will be informed of the same. The parties will usually be given 1 week to consider whether they wish to submit their financial issues for FNE. By default, FNEs are conducted on a non-binding basis. Parties may, by consent, opt for FNE to be conducted on a binding basis.

If both parties agree to submit their financial issues for FNE, the parties are to file the following documents within 1 week or any other period as directed by the Court:

a duly signed Joint Consent Form in Form 83-AA of Appendix A of these Practice Directions; and (b) an “Other Hearing Related Request” to update the Court and seek directions for FNE.

A Preliminary Conference for the FNE will be convened by the Court around 3 weeks after the filing and acceptance of the documents referred to in sub-paragraph (2). In the interim, if the parties have not filed their First Ancillary Affidavits, they may be directed to:

exchange a list of assets, liabilities, means and expenses (together with all relevant supporting documents) within 2 weeks or any other period as directed by the Court; and (b) submit to FDR by email their respective Statements for FNE in Form 83-AB of Appendix A of these Practice Directions, together with all relevant supporting documents at least 3 working days before the Preliminary Conference.

Parties will be given a designated email address (“FDR Email Address”) for the submission of their statements and documents.

The information and documents referred to in sub-paragraph (3)(a) are similar to the information and documents relevant to the financial issues referred for FNE that parties are required to provide in their First Ancillary Affidavits.

Preliminary Conference

Unless otherwise directed by the Court, all parties and their solicitors must attend the Preliminary Conference which will be conducted by the Evaluator.

At the Preliminary Conference, the Evaluator will discuss the following matters with the parties and their solicitors:

the financial issues referred for FNE; (b) the areas of agreement and dispute; (c) whether the FNE will be undertaken on a binding or non-binding basis; (d) the date for the FNE session; and (e) any other matters that will facilitate the efficient conduct of the FNE.

Parties who have filed and exchanged their respective First Ancillary Affidavits prior to the Preliminary Conference and who wish to agree upfront to a binding FNE, will be directed by the Evaluator to file the parties’ Agreement for Binding FNE in Form 83-AD of Appendix A of these Practice Directions before the FNE session is scheduled.

The Evaluator may give all necessary directions to facilitate the resolution of the case in accordance with the Objectives, including directions on submission of the following documents:

each party’s further documents relevant or material to the FNE; (b) parties’ Joint Statement for FNE in Form 83-AC of Appendix A of these Practice Directions or any other joint summary, at least 3 working days before the FNE session; and (c) parties’ respective written submissions including case authorities. All parties’ statements, summaries, documents, and submissions for FNE are to be sent by email to the FDR Email Address and are not to be filed in the Electronic Filing Service.

At any stage of the FNE process, the Evaluator shall have the discretion to decline the conduct of FNE for a case in respect of any or all of its referred financial issues if the Evaluator is of the view that the case and / or the issue(s) are not suitable or have become unsuitable for FNE.

FNE session

Unless otherwise directed, all parties shall attend the FNE session together with their solicitors. The solicitors having primary conduct over the case shall be present throughout the FNE session.

The FNE session will usually be fixed for half a day. Depending on its complexity, the Evaluator may schedule more than one FNE session to complete the evaluation of a case.

At the FNE session(s), the parties and their solicitors shall present their respective positions and supporting evidence to one another and the Evaluator. Rules of evidence do not apply in this process and cross-examination will generally not take place. The Evaluator may, at any time during the FNE session, ask questions to probe or clarify any submission or evidence presented by the parties. After all presentations and clarifications have been made, the Evaluator will give an evaluation of the relative merits of each party’s case and the likely outcome if it goes to trial.

If the parties have entered into an Agreement for Binding FNE, they will be required to prepare a Draft Ancillary Reliefs Order in Form 8 of Appendix A of these Practice Directions to give effect to the Evaluator’s evaluation and to submit the same to the Court for consideration and recording of a consent order. If the FNE was conducted on a non-binding basis, the parties will be expected to use the Evaluator’s evaluation in their negotiations towards a settlement of their dispute.

Post-FNE Case Conference

For the purpose of case management, a case conference (“Post-FNE Case Conference”) will be fixed around 1 week after the delivery of the Evaluator’s evaluation. Unless otherwise directed, all parties shall attend the Post-FNE Case Conference together with their solicitors.

If the parties are able to arrive at a settlement at or before the Post-FNE Case Conference, parties may record a consent order at the conference.

In the event that the parties are unable to resolve their dispute, the Evaluator will give such directions as he or she thinks fit, to facilitate the resolution of the case in accordance with the Objectives.

If the parties have not previously attended mediation for their contested financial issues, the Evaluator may recommend that parties attend mediation at FDR to explore ways to resolve their dispute amicably and / or narrow the issues in contention. The results of the FNE may be made available by the Evaluator to the mediator for this purpose.

Subject to sub-paragraph (2), the following shall be confidential and treated as “without prejudice” and shall not be disclosed to (or used as evidence in proceedings before) the Court dealing with any of the ancillary matters of the parties or in any other proceedings:

all communications made by the parties and the Evaluator during the FNE, including the Evaluator’s evaluation; and (b) all documents and materials prepared, submitted and / or exchanged in the course of and for the FNE.

To avoid doubt, the following shall not be confidential:

the parties’ Agreement for Binding FNE (if any); (b) the Evaluator’s written evaluation (only when parties have entered into an Agreement for Binding FNE); (c) directions given by the Evaluator / Judge after the conclusion of the FNE for the purpose of case management (including directions for the filing and exchange of affidavits); and (d) documents and materials prepared, submitted and / or exchanged in the course of and for the FNE that would in any event have been subject to disclosure in other proceedings.

Singapore society has become increasingly international. In cases involving children, a further complication arises where parents and children reside in more than one jurisdiction. In such cases, direct judicial communications may be beneficial. This Practice Direction is issued to facilitate such communications.

Direct judicial communications refer to communications that take place between sitting judges of different jurisdictions when there are concurrent related proceedings involving the same parties.

It has now been recognised and firmly established in some foreign jurisdictions such as England & Wales, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States of America that direct judicial communications are key mechanisms to assist practitioners and judges in resolving cases with an international element in the best interests of children and of justice in general. These communications will often result in considerable time savings and better use of available resources, and are done with the overriding objective of securing the best interests of the child. Direct judicial communication does not aim to inhibit parties’ right to adduce expert evidence on the foreign law, but should be seen as another tool to be made available for parties involved in multiple proceedings in different jurisdictions.

Introduction

This Practice Direction is issued to assist judges and solicitors dealing with family proceedings affecting children in which direct judicial communications may be beneficial. It is not intended to change the current rules or procedure or to affect the substantive rights of the parties, but is simply intended to facilitate cooperation in international cases, where appropriate.

The Liaison Judges of Singapore are appointed by the Chief Justice, and it is part of their role to receive and, when necessary, channel incoming judicial communications and initiate or facilitate outgoing communications. The current appointees and further details of the Liaison Judges can be found on the Singapore Courts website at .

Matters which may be the subject of direct judicial communications include, for example:

scheduling the case in the foreign jurisdiction: (i) to make interim orders, e.g. support, measure of protection; (ii) to ensure the availability of expedited hearings; (b) establishing whether protective measures are available for the child or other parent in the jurisdiction to which the child would be returned in the case of a child abduction case and, in an appropriate case, ensuring the available protective measures are in place in that jurisdiction before a return is ordered; (c) ascertaining whether the foreign court can accept and enforce undertakings offered by the parties in the initiating jurisdiction; (d) ascertaining whether the foreign court can issue a mirror order (i.e. same order in both jurisdictions); (e) confirming whether orders were made by the foreign court; (f) verifying whether findings about domestic violence were made by the foreign court; (g) verifying whether a transfer of jurisdiction is appropriate.

“Central Authority” in this Practice Direction is the Authority appointed under section 5 of the International Child Abduction Act 2010.

To avoid doubt, all references to “parties” or their “representatives” shall, where a child is to be separately represented, include the child representative as appointed by the Court under the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.

Overarching principles

Every judge engaging in direct judicial communications must respect the law of his or her jurisdiction.

When communicating, each judge seised of the matter should maintain his or her independence in reaching his or her own decision on the matter at issue.

Communications must not compromise the independence of the judge seised in reaching his or her own decision on the matter at issue. Any discussion about the merits of the case should be avoided.

To avoid doubt, parties remain entitled under the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 to call upon expert witnesses to prove or disprove the foreign law. The Court will take into account all the available evidence before arriving at a decision.

Procedure and safeguards

Either party to the proceeding may raise with the judge the desirability and need for direct judicial communications.

A judge seised of the matter may, if he or she determines it desirable, initiate direct judicial communication through the Liaison Judges.

Before deciding whether to engage in direct judicial communications, the judge should consider:

whether there is a question of foreign law or procedure to clarify with a judge in the foreign jurisdiction; (b) whether the question can be answered or dealt with by the Central Authority in Singapore or the Central Authority in the foreign jurisdiction, and if so, the judge may consider having the Central Authority address the issue or obtain the information; and (c) whether the question can be answered or dealt with by any judge in the foreign jurisdiction (other than the judge hearing the proceeding).

The following are commonly accepted procedural safeguards.

Except in special circumstances, parties are to be notified of the nature of the proposed communication; (b) A record is to be kept of communications and it is to be made available to the parties; (c) Any conclusions reached between the judges should be in writing and made available to parties; (d) Parties or their representatives should have the opportunity to be present in certain cases, for example via conference call facilities.

The commonly accepted procedural safeguards in sub-paragraph (13) should be adopted subject to Singapore’s legislation and rules.

In special or urgent circumstances where parties were not notified in advance of the nature of the proposed communications, the judge should provide written reasons to the parties as to why there was no notification as soon as practicable.

If any party objects to the proposed communications, the judge should direct submissions be lodged from all parties, and if necessary, should direct an oral hearing before ruling on the matter, giving short reasons for such ruling.

Initiating the communication

In considering whether the use of direct judicial communications is appropriate, the judge should have regard to speed, efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

Judges should consider the benefit of direct judicial communications and at what stage of the proceeding it should occur. The timing of the communication is for the judge who initiates it to consider.

The initial communication should ordinarily take place between our Liaison Judge and the Liaison Judge of the other jurisdiction, if any, in order to ascertain the identity of the judge seised in that jurisdiction. If no Liaison Judge has been appointed in the other jurisdiction, the Central Authority of Singapore or the party within jurisdiction is to assist in providing the identity of the judge in the other jurisdiction.

When making contact with a judge in another jurisdiction, the initial communication should normally be in writing sent by email from , subject to provisions set out in this Practice Direction in relation to written communications, and should in particular identify:

the name and contact details of the initiating judge; (b) the nature of the case (with due regard to confidentiality concerns); (c) the issue(s) on which communication is sought; (d) whether the parties before the judge initiating the communication have consented to judicial communication; (e) when the communication may occur (with due regard to time differences); (f) any specific questions which the judge initiating the communication would like answered; (g) any other pertinent matters.

The time and place for communications between the courts should be to the satisfaction of both courts.

Personnel other than judges in each court may communicate fully with each other to establish appropriate arrangements for the communication without the necessity for participation of solicitors unless otherwise directed by either of the courts.

The form of communications and language difficulties

Judges should use the most appropriate technological facilities in order to communicate as efficiently and as swiftly as possible.

The initial method and language of communication should, as far as possible, respect the preferences, if any, indicated by the intended recipient in the list of members of the Liaison Judges. Further communications should be carried out using the initial method and language of communication unless otherwise agreed by the judges concerned.

Where two judges do not understand a common language, and translation or interpretation services are required, such services could be provided by the court or the Central Authority in the country from which the communication is initiated.

Written communications

Written communications, particularly in initiating the contact, are valuable as they provide for a record of the communication and help alleviate language and time zone barriers.

Where the written communication is provided through translation, it is good practice also to provide the message in its original language.

Communications should always include the name, title and contact details of the sender.

Communications should be written in simple terms, taking into account the language skills of the recipient.

As far as possible, appropriate measures should be taken for the personal information of the parties to be kept confidential.

Written communications should be transmitted using the most rapid and efficient means of communication and, in those cases where it is necessary for confidential data to be transmitted, secured means of communication should be employed.

Written communications should always be acknowledged as soon as possible with an indication as to when a response will be provided.

All communications should be typewritten.

Ordinarily, communications should be in writing, save where sub-paragraph (35) applies.

Oral communications

Oral communications are encouraged where judges involved come from jurisdictions which share the same language.

Where the judges do not speak the same language, one or both of them, subject to an agreement between the two judges concerned, should have at their disposal a competent and neutral interpreter who can interpret to and from their language.

Where necessary, personal information concerning the parties should be anonymised for the purpose of oral communication.

Oral communications can take place by either telephone or video conference and in those cases where it is necessary that they deal with confidential information, such communications should be carried out using secured means of communication.

If both judges involved in the communication agree, the parties or their representative may be permitted to be present during the oral communication. If one party or representative is to be present, then the other party or representative should be permitted to be present.

Subject to the agreement of both judges involved in the oral communications:

such oral communications may be conducted in the presence of the parties or their representatives by way of video conference or by conference telephone call; (b) the parties or their representatives may be permitted to speak during the communication, but if one party or representative wishes to speak, then the other party or representative should be permitted a chance to answer.

Post communications

A written record of the communications should be sent to the parties as soon as practicable.

Any correspondence or email or written communications between the judges should be preserved for the record.

Keeping Central Authority informed of judicial communications

Where appropriate, the judge engaged in direct judicial communications may consider informing his or her Central Authority that a judicial communication will take place.

Where the Court makes an order granting the applicant(s) permission to amend the originating application, the applicant(s) shall within 7 working days amend the originating application by amending the information in the appropriate electronic template. The applicant(s) shall also file a supporting affidavit averring to the truth of the contents of the amended originating application. The amended originating application and the supporting affidavit shall be served on the Guardian-in-Adoption and, where the application relates to a child in state care, the Director-General of Social Welfare.

General requirements for amendment of any document

Where any document (inclusive of any originating application and summons) that has been filed in any proceedings is required to be amended and re-filed in Court, a fresh copy of the document with the amendments included must be prepared, regardless of the number and length of the amendments sought to be made.

The procedure for amending a document is as follows:

A fresh amended copy of the document should be produced. (b) The number of times the document has been amended must be indicated in parentheses after the name of the document. It should therefore be entitled “\[document name] (Amendment No. 1)” or “\[document name] (Amendment No. 2)”, or as appropriate.

The directions in sub-paragraph (2)(b) do not apply to originating applications and summonses amended from an application or summons to an application or summons without notice or the other way around.

An amended document must be endorsed with a statement that it has been amended, specifying the date on which it was amended and by whom the order (if any) authorising the amendment was made and the date of the order, and if no such order was made, the relevant provision in the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 pursuant to which the amendment was made.

The amendment endorsement shall take either one of the following forms:

“By order of Court made on \[date order was made]”; or (b) “Pursuant to Part 8, Rule \[cite specific rule number] of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024”.

The amendment endorsement must be appended to the title of the document, after the amendment number as required under sub-paragraph (2)(b). Where a document is amended more than once, the endorsement need only cite the basis for the most recent amendment. For example:

“Originating Application for Divorce (Amendment No. 3, by order of Court made on 1 April 2024)”; (b) “Originating Application for Divorce (Amendment No. 1, pursuant to Part 8, Rule 9(1)(a)(ii) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024)”.

Other requirements for amendment of documents (except any originating process, summons or other electronic form which is composed online through the Electronic Filing Service)

The changes made in the document from the latest version of the document filed in Court should be indicated in the following way:

deletions shall be made by drawing a single line across the words to be deleted; and (b) insertions must be underlined.

Colour scheme for amendments

In addition, the following colours shall be used to indicate the history of the amendments in the specified documents:

black for the first round of amendments; (b) red for the second round of amendments; (c) green for the third round of amendments; (d) blue for the fourth round of amendments; and (e) brown for subsequent rounds of amendments.

Amendment for third time or more

From the third round of amendments onwards, the amended specified document should comprise two versions of the document, i.e.:

a clean version without the amendments shown; followed in the same document by (b) a version showing the amendments in colour.

Only one amended document consisting of these two versions is required to be filed.

Other requirements for amendment of Court orders which are composed online through the Electronic Filing Service

Where an order of Court composed online through the Electronic Filing Service is to be amended pursuant to Part 8, Rule 11 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the amended order of Court is to be prepared and filed by entering the relevant amendments in the appropriate electronic template. The amended order of Court need not be filed in Portable Document Format (PDF).

Amendment of case title to add a party

Where the permission of Court has been obtained to add a party to the main case title of a matter, for example, an intervener, or any party that was previously a non-party, the applicant or his or her solicitor is to file a request through the Electronic Filing Service to add that specific party to the main case title.