Family Law
- Divorce
- Maintenance
- Domestic Violence interdicts and Protection Orders
- Custody
- Access Rights.
Matrimonial/Divorce Law
The matrimonial and divorce environment in South Africa is governed largely by the Marriages Act, the Matrimonial Property Act, the Divorce Act and the Family Violence Act.
Two basic marriage regimes are recognized, namely in and out of community of property, with marriages out of community of property being sub-categorized with or excluding the accrual system. It is important for prospective spouses to enter into an ante nuptial contract wherein the specific wishes and requirements of the spouses may be recorded and registered.
Special protection is afforded for persons who are/were involved in marital and extra-marital relationships through the provisions of the Family Violence Act.
We specialize in the drafting of co-habitation agreements, the drafting of ante nuptial contracts, divorces, divorce mediation, the drafting of divorce settlement agreements and generally marriage and divorce related litigation.
Children's Law
The rights of children, parents and grand-parents are largely regulated by the Childrens Act.
The Act now recognizes equal rights and responsibilities for both parents of a child. It is no more a situation where the mother of a child is preferred above the father of a child with regard to the allocation of rights and responsibilities. Both parents share the same rights and responsibilities towards their children.
A further major improvement of the rights of fathers, is the equalization of rights of fathers of so-called “illegitimate children”. I f a child is born during the co-habitation of its parents, notwithstanding the fact that they are not married, or even if the child is born following such co-habitation and the father wishes to identify with his child and maintains or tenders to maintain the child, such father also qualifies for full parental rights and responsibilities towards his child. It is no more a situation of the mother of a child having sole “custody” of a child. The concepts of “custody” and “access” have been replaced by concepts of “residency, care and contact rights” towards a minor child.
The Act furthermore makes provisions for the negotiation and establishment of parenting plans between separated parents, in terms of which the different rights and responsibilities of the parents may be set-out. Such agreement can be made an order of Court.
A further development in the Act is the recognition of certain rights of the family and, especially the grandparents of a child. The family and grandparents of a child may obtain certain rights towards a child.
The best interests of a child is the measure against which all acts pertaining the child should be weighed up.
The majority age of children have been lowered to 18 years.
This firm specializes in all aspects of child Law, including the bringing of applications for the enforcement of parental rights and responsibilities, contact rights and the negotiation and drafting of parenting plans.
Law Of Maintenance
Although the law of maintenance forms a component of marriage and childrens’ law, it constitutes a separate legal science, which is regulated by the provisions of the Maintenance Act.
The Maintenance Act regulates the obtaining and enforcement of maintenance orders for , especially children.
An important development is that no discrimination is allowed against or in favour of children being born out of different relationships of their parents, in other words a child born from a later relationship may not be discriminated against for being born later out of a different relationship.
Provision is made for the enforcement of maintenance orders via attachments, garnishee orders and attachment of debt.
This firm specializes and do all our appearances in Court in person.