Judicature (Amendment)

Judicature (Amendment) AN ACT TO AMEND THE JUDICATURE ACT, NO. 2 OF 1978. BE it enacted by the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka as follows:- Short title 1. This Act may be cited as the Judicature (Amendment) Act, No. 37 of 1979. Replacement of section 23 of Act, No. 8 of 1978. 2. Section 23 of the Judicature Act, No. 2 of 1978, hereinafter referred to as the “principal enactment”, is hereby repealed and the following new section substituted therefor:- ” Appeals. 23. Any party who shall be dissatisfied with any judgment, decree, or order pronounced by a District Court may (excepting where such right is expressly disallowed) appeal to the Court of Appeal against any such judgment, decree, or order from any error in law or in fact committed by such court, but no such appeal shall have the effect of staying the execution of such Judgment, decree, or order unless the District Judge shall see fit to make and order to that effect, in which case the party appellant shall enter into a bond, with or without sureties as the District Judge shall consider necessary, to appear when required and abide the judgment of the Court of Appeal upon the appeal”. Amendment of station 26 of the principal enactment. 3. Section 26 of the principal enactment is hereby amended by the addition, at the end of that section, of the following new subsection:- : ” (5) Until a Family Counsellor is attached to a Family Court under subsection (1), the preceding provisions of this section shall have no application to any proceedings instituted in such court: Provided that where no Family Counsellor has been attached to such Family Court at the time the inquiry or trial has commenced, then notwithstanding the attachment of the Family Counsellor, the inquiry or trial may continue and be proceeded with to find judgment without reference to the Family Counsellor.”. Replacement of section 29 of the principal enactment. 4. Section 29 of the principal enactment is hereby repealed and the following new section substituted therefor: – “Procedure 29. (1) All proceedings in a Family Court Courts shall be instituted and conducted as expeditiously as possible in accordance with such regulations as may be prescribed: Provided that until such regulations have been so prescribed, the court shall, as far us ‘ practicable, follow the provisions relating to summary procedure in the Civil Procedure Code. (2) The provisions of the Adoption of Children Ordinance and the Maintenance Ordinance governing the institution and conducting of proceedings under the said Ordinances shall be deemed to apply to such proceedings that may be instituted in the Family Courts. (3) All applications for the care and custody of minor children shall take precedence over all other matters in every Family Court and shall, unless exceptional circumstances so warrant, be heard from day to day to ensure the expeditious disposal of the same.”. Amendment of the Second Schedule to the principal enactment. 5. The Second Schedule to the principal enactment is hereby amended as follows: – (a) by the omission of item 1; (b) by the renumbering of items 2, 3 and 4 as items 1, 2 sad 3 respectively; and (c) by the substitution, for the renumbered item 3, of the following new item:- “3. Abetment and conspiracy for the abetment or commission of the offences described in item 1 above and conspiracy for the commission of the offences described in item 2 above.”. Amendment of the Third Schedule to the principal enactment. 9. The Third Schedule to the principal enactment is hereby amended as follows:- (a) by the insertion immediately after the item ” Foreign. Marriages Ordinance (Chapter 116).”, of the following item:- ” Jaffna Matrimonial Rights and Inheritance Ordinance (chapter 58).”,and (b) by the insertion immediately after the item “Marriage Registration Ordinance (chapter 112).”, of the following item:- ” Married Women’s property ordinance (chapter 56).”.