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WhatsApp for urgent legal assistanceMust I tell ex where his child is living?
I handled a case recently where my client’s soon-to-be ex-wife did not want to tell him where she and the minor child were residing. Does our law allow for this?
This had been a particularly acrimonious divorce. My client had met his wife about ten years earlier, and they had married virtually six months after they had met. They had an eight year old son together. Problems arose in the marriage. They each alleged that the other had a drinking problem. They no longer shared the same bed.
Then eventually our client was forced to go work a few hours drive out of Cape Town, and the son and his wife continued living in the matrimonial home. Eventually our client decided to move back to Cape Town. On his return he was informed by neighbours that another man had been seen sleeping over at the house while he had been working out of Cape Town.
Our client had good reason to believe that his wife had been having an affair. This led to even more problems in the marriage, and even more arguing. Eventually one day our client’s wife moved out of the house with the child. She did not want to disclose where she was living.
Even though there was no duty on her to disclose her own place of residence if she did not have children, there was and is however a duty on her to disclose the residence of the minor child in terms of the Children’s Act.
I sent her attorney a letter demanding to know the address of the child. No response was received from her attorney, so on my instructions we successfully launched a court application requesting full details of where the child was residing, as well as interim access to the child.
Sometimes parents in a divorce think that they can simply write off the other parent. This however is definitely not what the Children’s Act encourages.
What was particularly frustrating for our client in this case was that after his wife had moved out of the family home, and in with her new lover, she had been admitted to a clinic for depression, and had left the child in the care of her new lover. Our client had never consented to this, and the new man was even taking and fetching the child from school.
Every biological parent has a right in terms of the Children’s Act to an address and phone number of where their child is living at all times. A spouse has a duty to disclose that information to the other spouse, unless there is some kind of court interdict or order which states otherwise.
Parents in a divorce should encourage the ex to participate in the child’s life. Not disclosing the address or phone number of the child to the ex is really not in the minor child’s best interests.
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Other divorce-related issues
At the beginning
Should I advise my spouse of the impending divorce action?
Should you move out of the matrimonial house prior to divorce?
Remove your spouse as a beneficiary on your Life assurance.
Psychological issues
Marriage counselling to avoid divorce
Child-related divorce matters
Can a "band-aid baby" save a marriage?
Annexure A
If there are minor children involved, the divorce summons must have an Annexure A attached to it.
Custody of children upon divorce
Jurisdiction in child custody matter (e.g. if child moved to another province)
Joint decisions with respect to minor children
Using Rule 43 to apply for interim custody entitlement
Child custody for the father
Custody granted to unmarried father
When a child won't see his/her father or mother
An unborn child when divorcing
Grandparents & divorce
When Grandparents want custody ahead of parents
Challenging the family advocate report
Child custody post divorce
Application to terminate your ex's parental rights
Splitting up siblings post divorce
Which parent decides the school to attend?
Child custody on death of a parent
Child custody following the death of a parent.
Maintenance for children
Child maintenance to what age?
Maintenance & proof of paternity
Maintenance & custody of adopted children
Maintenance for the unborn child
Token or minimal maintenance when parent doesn't work
Impact of inheritance on child maintenance obligations
Maintenance for children over 18
Children suing for maintenance
Arrest after failing to pay maintenance
Abduction & kidnapping of children
Abduction of a minor - Latest case law
The kidnapping of minor children by a parent
The international abduction of children from South Africa.
International divorces, children & overseas issues
Divorce when the children & spouse are overseas
Child contact rights for an overseas parent
When your child and ex move overseas - keeping contact
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Handicapped children & the divorce rate
National register of those unsuited to working with children
Affairs
Affairs and their impact on divorce settlements.
Assets/debt and divorce
The duty to disclose your financials when divorcing.
Insufficent disclosure from a spouse on their assets/liabilities; the section 7 notice remedy (in terms of the Matrimonial Property Act)
Division of the joint estate in the event of a divorce.
- Antenuptial contracts
- When parties cannot agree on the accrual calculation; the court may appointment a referee to assist with the accrual calculation
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- How affairs impact the division of assets on divorce
Movable assets - what to take if you move out.
Protection of assets using a trust
Divorce & pension fund assets
Divorce and pension fund payouts
Get your info directly from spouse's pension fund, not indirectly from your spouse.
Undisclosed Pension Interest at divorce results in amendment to divorce order
Pension interest in the accrual calculation, and the related tax liability
State pension fund is unconstitutional
Navy pension payout post-divorce
Property and divorce
Be careful with how you word the clauses about selling the property upon divorce
Should you move out of the matrimonial house prior to divorce?
Property in your spouse's name
When parents have rights to stay at the property you want to sell on divorce.
Life insurance, death & divorce
Life assurance actions you need to take when divorcing
Death in the middle of divorce
Divorce & future expenses
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Marriage (COP vs ANC), cohabition and Universal partnerships
Marriage in community of property
Short definition of a marriage in community of property
Forfeiture of benefits of marriage in community of property - Wijker v Wijker 1993
Kooverjee v Kooverjee
Rights for those in Universal partnerships
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Treatise on the Contract of Partnership: By Pothier ; with the Civil Code and Code of Commerce ... (1854)
Null declaration of customary union
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Non-compliance with a divorce order
Spangenberg & Another vs De Waal; Rule 43 order is set aside
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Divorce: Forging spouse's signature
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Annulment instead of divorce
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Quote for Family Lawyer
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