TEMASEK POLYTECHNIC
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
AY 2014/2015 SEMESTRAL EXAMINATION
(April Semester)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
SUBJECT LEVEL: 2
TIME ALLOWED: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES
1.
This paper consists of 15 pages (excluding cover page, but including Annex A).
2.
There are THREE sections to this paper. ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS in all
sections.
3.
This is a PARTIAL OPEN-BOOK assessment. You may only refer to your
personal unannotated copy of the Women's Charter during the assessment.
4.
Except for Question 2 (the Crossword Puzzle), write ALL your answers in the
answer booklets provided.
For Question 2 (the Crossword Puzzle), complete the puzzle at Annex A;
detach and secure Annex A to your answer booklet.
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
SECTION A: MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS
(TOTAL 30 MARKS)
Answer all questions (2 marks each). Use the 'MCQ Answer Page' printed on the
answer booklet for your answers.
Question 1
1.1
1.2
Which of the following is FALSE? Under the Women's Charter, on her
marriage a woman
a.
has the right to use her own surname.
b.
follows the domicile of her husband.
c.
can sue and be sued in her own name.
d.
continues to be liable for the debts and liabilities she incurred or
e.
committed before her marriage.
can sue her husband as if the parties were not married.
Which of the following is FALSE? Persons domiciled Singapore do NOT have
the capacity to marry
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
1.3
if they are already married to someone else.
if they do not attend a marriage preparation programme.
someone who is within the listed prohibited degrees.
if they are under 21 years.
someone of the opposite gender.
Which of the following is NOT a formality when forming a marriage in
Singapore?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Parties forming a marriage have to exchange a set of prescribed vows.
One of the parties to an intended marriage has to file a Notice of
Marriage at the Registry of Marriages.
Each of the parties to a proposed marriage must make a statutory
declaration with regards inter alia to that party's status.
If one party to a proposed marriage is a divorcee, that party must state
in their statutory declaration whether they owe any arrears of
maintenance.
e.
Parties forming a marriage have to have their marriage ceremony
solemnized by a licensed person.
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 1
1.4
Penny and David are very keen on starting a family. Unfortunately they have
been trying unsuccessfully for a few years already. Out of desperation and
with the agreement of Imelda their live-in domestic helper, Penny agrees for
David to have sex with Imelda in the hope that Imelda will be able to conceive
a child by David. The agreement with Imelda is that after the birth of the child
she will give the child up for Penny and David's adoption and will be
handsomely compensated for her co-operation. Which of the following
statements is FALSE?
a.
b.
c.
As Penny gave her 'permission', David cannot be considered to have
committed adultery when he had sex with Imelda.
Until adoption the child born of the sexual relationship between David
and Imelda will not be considered a child of the marriage of David and
Penny.
David is considered to have committed adultery when he had sex with
Imelda. However, Penny cannot rely on this to obtain a divorce from
David.
d.
e.
Even before the adoption of the child is finalized Penny would have a
duty to maintain the child.
The agreement Penny and David made to handsomely compensate
Imelda for her co-operation is unlawful.
(The next question is an a new page.)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page2
1.5
Chin Ai and Kiasu married in 1980. In the course of the marriage Kiasu, a selfmade millionaire gave Chin Ai many valuable gifts, from jewellery to
condominium units. Together these gifts are today worth close to $11 million.
Now that the children have grown up and left home, Chin Ai is divorcing
Kiasu. Upset at this turn of events Kiasu wants a return of all the gifts. He
feels very strongly that she should have no share in them. Which of the
following statements is TRUE?
a.
b.
As Chin Ai seems to be 'abandoning' her duties as a wife, Kiasu is
correct - she should have no share in the gifts he bestowed her.
As Chin Ai stayed home and looked after the children and the
household she should be allowed to keep 50% of the gifts Kiasu
bestowed her.
c.
d.
e.
1.6
As all of the gifts Kiasu bestowed on Chin Ai are inter-spousal gifts,
they are therefore matrimonial assets to be divided between the
parties.
As all of the gifts Kiasu bestowed on Chin Ai are in her name, applying
the presumption of advancement, they belong to her in entirety.
As the gifts bestowed by Kiasu on Chin Ai are considered 'gifts' under
s. 112 (10) Women's Charter, they are to be excluded from division
between the parties.
With regards to property issues between husband and wife during the
subsistence of the marriage, which of the following is FALSE?
a.
b.
c.
The concept of 'separation of property' will be applied.
Principles of family law play a minimal role in resolving such issues.
Division of the property will be in accordance with s. 59, Women's
Charter.
d.
e.
The property issues will be decided in accordance with property law.
Equitable or beneficial interested will be recognized as set out by trust
law.
(The next question is an a new page.)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 3
1.7
Which of the following statements is TRUE? In the division of matrimonial
assets when one party fails to make "full and frank disclosure"
a.
b.
c.
that party will not be given a share in the matrimonial assets.
the court will order that party to make full and frank disclosure.
the court will order that party to maintain the other.
d.
e.
the court will draw an adverse inference against that party.
the court will order garnishee proceedings to be brought against that
party.
1.8
Yvonne, a Singaporean, met and fell in love with Crammy, a domiciliary of
Butuk, a remote region in Central Africa. Under the very tradition-bound
laws of Butuk only couples who are, at least 5.years apart in their ages may
marry. Yvonne is 33 years old; Crammy is 30 years old.
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
a.
b.
As the couple are from different domiciliaries, they may not get
married anywhere in the world.
Applying the dual domicile rule, Yvonne and Crammy cannot get
married in Singapore.
c.
The couple may validly marry in any jurisdiction that recognizes the
d.
Sottomayer Exception to the dual domicile rule.
As Yvonne is domiciled in Singapore and she has capacity to marry
Crammy, that is all that is relevant. Butuk should not reject their
application to marry.
e.
As the very tradition-bound laws of Butuk are ridiculous in the context
of the 21st century they should be ignored.
(The next question is an a new page.)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 4
1.9
The Court of Appeal in Yeo Chong Lin v. Tay Ang Choo Nancy [2011] 2 SLR
1157 decided that
a.
a spouse may take credit for non-financial contributions they make,
like homemaking and child caring, even if they work full time.
b.
equality of division was the starting point and should be the norm in
c.
d.
e.
any given case of dividing matrimonial assets.
"gift" appearing in s. 112 (10), Women's Charter does not include
interspousal gifts.
Parliament did not intend for there to be a definitive 'operative date' to
decide when assets acquired by husband and wife may no longer be
considered matrimonial assets. Considering the many different types
of assets and circumstances that could be involved, different operative
dates were possible.
any new assets purchased with proceeds of the sale of any business is
also liable for division and distribution.
1.10
James is handsome, dashing and debonair. Women are always swooning over
him. James is also a compulsive gambler. Through his charm and charismatic
nature he is usually able to persuade women to lend him money to feed his
gambling habit. 55-year-old wealthy businesswoman Betty Boop, smitten by
James' charms, has proposed marriage to James.
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
a.
b.
Once married, Betty Boop would be responsible for all of James' debts.
Marriage does not affect the status of any of the parties' personal debts
and liabilities i.e. both parties remain responsible for their own debts
and liabilities.
c.
Betty Boop's earnings and savings could be garnished in settlement of
James' debts.
d.
e.
Once married, James is obliged to share his winnings with Betty Boop.
After marriage, being the man in the relationship, James is responsible
for Betty Boop's debts and liabilities.
(The next question is an a new page.)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 5
1.11
In Nov 2013, after a whirlwind romance Clark married beautiful Lois. On
their wedding night Clark had no choice but to confess that during his
pubescent years he suffered a bad viral infection which left him both sterile
and impotent. Lois was most disappointed but she was optimistic that their
love would surmount the problem. As time went by however she became
more and more distraught. She has become obsessed with having children of
her own. She discussed her unhappiness many times with Clark but all he
could do and say was that he would do everything he could to show her how
much he loved her. Which of the following statements is MOST accurate?
a.
b.
The marriage between Clark and Lois is void as Clark is unable to
consummate the marriage.
Lois could apply for the marriage to be declared null and void as Clark
is unable to consummate the marriage.
c.
The marriage between Clark and Lois is voidable as Clark is said to be
d.
suffering from a venereal disease.
Lois will not be able to apply for the marriage to be declared null and
void as she has to wait for 3 years from the date of the marriage to
pass.
e.
Lois will not be able to apply for the marriage to be declared null and
void as it would be unjust to Clark to nullify the marriage.
(The next question is an a new page.)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 6
1.12
Loong and Ching, both Singaporeans, married on 1st July 2010. In May 2012
while on a business trip to Thailand Loong met Suwanna, an 18-year-old Thai
masseuse. He fell in love with her and made arrangements for her to come to
Singapore as the domestic helper for Ching. At that time Ching was feeling
extremely overwhelmed as she was trying to juggle between being the main
caregiver of their 6-month-old son Joseph and working extremely hard to
climb the corporate ladder at the office.
At first she welcomed the help of Suwanna, but soon enough she realised that
the only reason Suwanna was in the house was to be Loong's lover. In July
2012 she left the matrimonial home with Joseph and has since been living
with her unmarried sister Beatrice.
Which of the following statements is FALSE?
a.
b.
c.
1.13
d.
Loong could be said to be committing adultery with Suwanna.
Loong could be said to have deserted Ching since July 2012.
Loong could be said to have behaved in such a way that Ching cannot
reasonably be expected to live with him.
Ching could be said to have deserted Loong since July 2012.
e.
None of the above statements is false.
72-year-old retiree, Wu Lee Yew, is living quite contentedly on his pension
and CPF savings. His wife of 35 years, 58-year-old Chin Cham, is
unfortunately not so lucky. 5 years ago she suffered a massive stroke which
left her paralysed and bedridden. She now lives in an old folk's home for the
sick and aged, known as 'The Heavenly Cloud'. Wu Lee Yew unfortunately
has not been diligent in paying for the costs of Chin Cham's stay at the home.
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
a.
b.
As Chin Cham is not yet 60 years old the Maintenance of Parents Act
cannot help her.
Even though Chin Cham is not yet 60 years old, nevertheless she is
infirmed and is not able to maintain herself. Therefore the Maintenance
c.
of Parents Act could be used to help her.
Even though the couple is still married to each other, because they are
not living together neither has a duty to maintain the other.
d.
As Chin Cham is infirmed and is not able to maintain herself, the
Maintenance of Parents Act will help her obtain maintenance from Wu
Lee Yew.
e.
As Wu Lee Yew is over 60 years old he could resort to the Maintenance
of Parents Act for him to obtain maintenance from his children.
.^^^.^^.^^^^^
p^7
1.14
Following from the facts given in question 1.13 above, assuming that the
Maintenance of Parents Act could help Chin Cham, which of the following
statements is TRUE?
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
As her husband, Wu Lee Yew may make the application to obtain a
maintenance order for funds to go towards Chin Cham's monthly
charges.
As the eldest son of Wu Lee Yew and Chin Cham, Wu Tua Tow may
make the application to obtain a maintenance order for funds to go
towards Chin Cham's monthly charges.
Through a 'joinder of respondents' all of the 5 children of Wu Lee Yew
and Chin Cham may make the application to obtain a maintenance
order for funds to go towards Chin Cham's monthly charges.
Only Chin Cham may make the application to obtain a maintenance
order for funds to go towards her, monthly charges. ,„„„,,,,,,,„,,. „,„,,„,..,
In all probability, 'The Heavenly Cloud' will be given approval to
make the application to obtain a maintenance order for funds to go
i towards Chin Cham's monthly charges.
(The next question is an a new page.)
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
,
Page 8
1.15
Following from the facts given in question 1.13 above, assuming that the
Maintenance of Parents Act could help Chin Cham, which of the following
statements is FALSE? A maintenance order for funds to go towards Chin
Cham's monthly charges could be made against
a.
Wu Tua Tow the eldest son of Wu Lee Yew and Chin Cham. Tua Tow
is 32 years old, a lecturer at a local polytechnic, married and living in a
condominium with his own family.
b.
Wu Sueh Tow the second son of Wu Lee Yew and Chin Cham. Sueh
Tow is 29 years old, single, an engineer, living on his own in a 5-room
HDB flat.
c.
d.
e.
Seow Mei, a daughter born as a result of a short liaison Wu Lee Yew
had with his former secretary Mary Sng. Seow Mei has been looked
after by Wu Lee Yew and Chin Cham from soon after her birth. One
could say that she has been unequivocally accepted as a member of the
family. Seow Mei is now 28 years old, a very successful lawyer.
22-year-old Jessie, adopted by Wu Lee Yew and Chin Cham when she
was found abandoned by her natural but unwed mother. Jessie is
running her own business. Though not a complete success yet, she
nevertheless makes a comfortable living.
17-year old Candice, the youngest child of Wu Lee Yew and Chin
Cham. Candice is very entrepreneurial. Just 17 years old she runs a
very successful on-line business selling costume jewellery that she
hand makes.
*** End of Section A ***
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 9
SECTION B: CROSSWORD PUZZLE
(TOTAL 30 MARKS)
Answer all questions (2 marks each). Complete the crossword at Annex A with the
clues provided below. Detach and secure Annex A to your answer booklet.
Question 2
ACROSS
4
An illegitimate child may be legitimated on the
of his
parents.
9
A
guardian is appointed under a will.
10
From June 1981, a married woman's domicile of
has been
abolished.
12
Even when a parent is given sole custody to a child, as a general rule
to the child will still be granted to the non-custodial
parent.
14
When Gunther and Gabrill got married 5 years ago, as a wedding gift to
him, Gabrill bought a private water-fronting apartment on Sentosa for her
husband Gunther. The apartment was registered in Gunther's name.
is considered the legal owner of the property.
DOWN
1
Adoptions
a child's birth parents with adoptive parents.
2
Mat Segamat took a parang and threatened to chop up his two children and
then kill himself if his wife Norlina does not improve her cooking skills.
Norlina should apply to the Family Court for an
Order.
3
A special marriage licence is needed when one party to an intended
marriage is below
years of age.
5
A judgment of
is necessary before a voidable marriage can
be considered to be null and void.
6
One year after her wedding, Cersei had her marriage annulled because she
discovered that at the time of marriage, her husband, Cyreien, had kept
from her the fact that he had been certified mentally ill and unfit for
marriage. Baby Storm had been born of the short-lived marriage. Baby
Storm is considered
7
.
In the division of matrimonial assets the "
to reach "just and equitable proportions" of the assets.
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
" approach is used
Page 10
No one may file a writ for divorce until 3 years have passed since the date of
marriage unless inter alia the
shows that he has suffered
"exceptional hardship".
19-year-old Arya is an orphan. Assuming that no one has been appointed as
her guardian, for her to get married Arya must now seek the consent of
11
Quintessential matrimonial assets are subject to
after dissolution of the marriage.
13
If one party to a marriage has been continually absent from the other party
for a period of
years, there is a presumption of death and divorce.
*** End of Section B ***
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 11
SECTION C: PROBLEM-BASED QUESTIONS
(TOTAL 40 MARKS)
Answer all questions. Give reasons for all your answers. Cite authorities to
support your answer.
Question 3
Derek and Rosalind met at a club in Clarke Quay. Both are Singaporeans. They fell
in love and were married six months later. On their wedding night, Derek was
horrified when Rosalind confessed that she was born a male, "Ross", but had
undergone a successful sex-reassignment operation when she was 22 years old. Her
Singapore identity card clearly reflects her as 'female'. Derek was very upset. He is
certain that under Singapore law, homosexual marriages are invalid and therefore
their marriage was null and void.
3.1
Is Derek correct in his understanding of the law? Explain your answer.
(6 marks)
3.2
Give ONE other argument that Derek could possibly raise to have his
marriage to Rosalind declared null and void? Explain your answer.
(4 marks)
Question 4
Chan is 74 years old; his wife Sim is 72 years old. They were married on 29 May
1975. They have one son, Willy, 36 years old. Willy is a polytechnic lecturer.
Throughout the marriage until his retirement'8 years ago, Chan, a construction
contractor worked very hard to provide for his family. He generally paid for the
family's expenses and gave an average of $500 per month to his wife as maintenance.
He also paid for their son's primary and secondary education.
Sim on the other hand was a full-time housewife responsible for the household as
well as the well-being of Chan and Willy. In 1988, she received an inheritance of
$180,000 from her late mother. This was used to pay for Willy's polytechnic, and
later, his university expenses. She was even able to stretch the inherited money to
provide him an allowance when he was serving National Service.
By and large the marriage was a very 'old fashioned' one with Chan spending most
of his days (weekends included) working and providing for the family while Sim
cooked, cleaned and made sure the family was well looked after. Chan would come
home for his meals but whatever spare time he had he would spend drinking and
gambling with his buddies. He doesn't have a close relationship with Sim or Willy.
r^————————
Page 12
He has very little good to say about them. When he was at home he would be very
demanding, cursing and swearing at them calling them 'useless' and nothing but a
burden on him. The only joy Sim had was to watch her son grow up tall and strong
and doing well in school. When Willy left to pursue his tertiary education in
Glasgow University, United Kingdom, being all alone at home with Chan, Sim grew
depressive under Chan's constant emotional and verbal abuse. The situation grew a
lot worse when Chan retired in 2006 and started spending a lot more time at home.
In 2010, Sim started adding small amounts of arsenic, a poison in the form of
insecticide, into Chan's tea and food. From day to day the effects of the poisoning
were minimal. But by 2012 the cumulative effect of the arsenic poisoning caused
Chan to suffer from anaemia and liver cirrhosis. On 27 Dec 2012, Sim was sentenced
to one year's imprisonment for causing hurt to Chan. During the criminal trial she
was diagnosed to have suffered from a long history of chronic spousal emotional
and verbal abuse. Her unhappiness with Chan led her to poison him so as to get
back at him. To date Chan is in poor health largely because of Sim's arsenic
poisoning. He requires a variety of costly medical care now and in the future.
The High Court has just granted interim judgment of divorce to both Chan and Sim
on their claim and counterclaim respectively. Sim is claiming a fair and equitable
division of the matrimonial assets.
4.1
Chan refuses to give Sim a share of the matrimonial assets. His main reason is
that she had previously tried to kill him by poisoning him with arsenic. Chan
argues that the court should not give Sim a share in the matrimonial assets to
reflect its disapproval of her act of poisoning him.
From your understanding of Singapore's law on the division of matrimonial
assets are Chan's arguments valid? Should Sim's misconduct of hurting Chan
with arsenic deprive her of a just and equitable division of the matrimonial
assets? Give reasons for your answers.
(8 marks)
4.2
With specific application to Chan and Sim's case, list FOUR factors that the
court would take into consideration to arrive at a just and equitable division
of the couple's matrimonial assets.
(3 marks each; total 12 marks)
FAMILYLAW (BLM2003)
Page 13
4.3
Review each of the items mentioned below. Would each of them be
considered as 'matrimonial assets' and therefore divisible? Give reasons for
your answers.
•
•
•
The matrimonial house, a single storey terrace house at 30 Dolphin Street.
Its current value is $1,906,085.44. Chan purchased it on his own in 1972 at
the princely sum of $13,000. It is registered in his name.
A Singapore Savings Bank Account No XXXXXXXX9001 in Chan's name
standing at $192,892.85. This is his personal operational account. It was
opened when he received his first pay check in 1965 and has been used
ever since then for all his income and expenses.
A POSB Savings Account No XXXXXX1784 in Sim's name standing at
$30,222.19. She opened this account when she received the inheritance
from her mother. The whole of the inheritance went into the account and
the outstanding balance is what she still retains after deducting the
expenses made for Willy's education.
(10 marks)
*** End of Section C ***
****END OF PAPER***
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
Page 14
Admission Number:
ANNEX A
Crossword Puzzle for Question 2
(Please detach and secure this page to your answer booklet.)
1
2
3
4
6
5
7
8
9
10
•
11
•
12
13
14
FAMILY LAW (BLM2003)
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