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Maintenance: Enforcing payment with contempt of court proceedings |
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by
LawDotNews
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Published
2009/05/05 12:00:00 AM
(Viewed
661
times) |
If your maintenance is in arrears, contempt of court proceedings may be an effective way to enforce speedy payment
As a farmer in effective control of two farms found out recently when his plea of poverty was rejected, and he was sentenced by the High Court to a suspended sentence of 3 months imprisonment, to come into effect unless he pays the arrears per a strict timetable.
To succeed, you need to prove (beyond a reasonable doubt): -
1. That a court order for maintenance was granted against the other party, and
2. That the other party was properly served with the order or given notice of it, and
3. That he or she “either disobeyed the order or neglected to comply with it.”
Then the onus shifts to the other party to produce evidence establishing a “reasonable doubt” as to whether or not the non-compliance was “wilful and mala fide”, (i.e. intentional and in bad faith).
In the case in question, the Court held against the farmer purely on the papers (affidavits) lodged by both sides, as opposed to calling for evidence from witnesses – that’s important, because delay in finalisation is inevitable if the matter requires oral evidence.
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