INQUIRERS' CORNER

NZ Truth, Issue 1185, 16 August 1928, Page 18

INQUIRERS' CORNER

p::z!!!!:;:=!!!H!!!!:::::::!::!!:!=!!;i:j conducted by "interpreter." k:::====^^ || Answers will be published as early as possible after receipt of || if questions and so far as possible m order of rotation of receipt. || 11 All letters must be written m ink and be addressed. "Interpreter || jj! c/o "Truth," Manners Street, Wellington. While we take no | 1% responsibility for any answer given m these columns! every | || endeavor will be made to see'that they are absolutely oorrect. | ,|| Answers to legal queries must be accepted merely as m | l§ guide as to whether or not it Is worth while going to the ex* § ll pense of placing matters inquired about m the hands of a § ia solicitor for further action. . . 1 if No replies can be made by post. No anonymous inquiries || If will be answered, and inquiries of this nature will not be pre- || if served. Frivolities and questions not of general interest will || l| not be answered. |i i*iiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiniiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiniiimiriii uiirfimmiiimimimiiimmiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiim mini mini l " llll " lll " nlnlnlll ''''' l '"'' l ' M ' l '"'!!!'!!!!!!!!!!!m!!mM!!!!!iimiiliJ '>iniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiininninininiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiinnuniuiiiiuiiiiiit iiiiiiiiimimmmiiimimimiiiiiimimimiiiiiim iitmimnimii"" '»'»

PROPERTY RIGHTS. Q.: I own a section of land through which It is proposed to put a new road one chain wide, my boundary being where the centi-e of the road will come, therefore I will lose a strip of land half a chain wide. (1) Can the local authority compel me to give, or sell the requh*ed land? (2) Can I fix the price or must I accept the local authorities figure? (3) Am I responsible for a portion of the cost of survey and roading and fencing? — "Anxious Ratepayer^' (Napier). A.: (1) Yes. (2) You are entitled to have compensation assessed by the court. (3) No. Q.: The trees on my neighbor's property have grown so tall that they keep the sun from my property during the winter with the result that a portion of my house has become affected with borer. Have I any redress? — "Anxious" . (Johnsonville). A.: You can compel your neighbor to cut overhanging branches back to your boundary, but you cannot do anything further. WAGES AND PENSIONS. Q.: Twenty years ago I was convicted and fined £25 for theft. Does this prevent my obtaining the old age pension now? — "Lapsed" (Dunedin). A.: No. MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE. Q.: A man left his property to his wife without any restrictions. If she remarries can the trustees reduce the payments made to her out of the estate? — "Anxious" (Invercargill). A.: No. Q.: I was discharged from a mental hospital after being an inmate for two years. My wife refuses to live with me. Can I get a divorce without waiting three years? , „.„„.„„„„„„, „„„, — "Faithful" Ivlim",!":"!":!"!!!!!!!"!:!"!""!;!!",,"!!!!!,::

(Christchurch). f| A.: You can sue H for restitution of |1 conjugal rights. If || the order is not || complied with you || may take divorce If proceedings imme- 11 diately. || Q.: How long || must a man be H separated from 1 1 his wife before he U is entitled to re- H marry without ob- II taining a divorce? |f — "Enquirer" (Na- H pier). - || A.: Mere separ- H ation can never || entitle him to re- || marry without || being guilty of || bigamy. If, how- l| ever, he cannot || be proved to have || seen or heard of 1™

his wife for a period of seven years, there is a legal presumption that she is dead. He may then remarry and will have a valid defence to a charge of bigamy. If, however, the wife subsequently' appears, the second marriage will be void and the issue of it illegitimate. Q.: I wish to marry a girl aged 20, whose mother divorced her husband and has-custody of her daughter. Must the girl obtain her father's consent to the marriage as well as her mother's? — "A.8." (Auckland). A.: No. MAINTENANCE Q.: I have been paying maintenance for my wife and children for some time. Recently my wife took the children to my left them there and went to Tonga. What is my position?— "Hard Up" (St. Heliers). A.: You should apply to the Magistrate's Court for cancellation of the maintenance order. Your wife may be entitled to some maintenance, but not the sum formerly paid. You can claim any money m your solicitor's hands not paid over for maintenance. Q.: (1) My illegitimate child is now In the mental defectives school. I recently married and have fallen into arrears with his maintenance. Can I be sued for these arrears? (2) What procedure should be gone through m order that my husband might adopt him?— " Anxious." (Dunedln). A.: (1) Yes. (2) You would have to go to a solicitor to have the necessary documents drawn. WILLS. Q.: My wife died leaving her property to the children. I was omitted altogether. Have I any claim to a share m her estate? Would the fact that I have property of my own count against me m any proceedings I may take? — "Curious" (Dunedin). A.: You are entitled to make application to have provision made for you out of the estate under the Family Protection Act, but m view of the circumstances it is unlikely that you would get more than a nominal sum. Q.: If a man dies intestate leaving <a. widow, a son and a father, to whom will his estate go? — "G.8.R." (Dunedin). A.: Two -thirds to the son and the remainder to the widow.

Disappearance || Q.: Before my marriage m || 1925 I was under the impres- §| sion that my wife was a widow. || She made a declaration that =| her previous husband went to || the war m 1914 and that she 1| had not heard of him since. I if afterwards found that she Jiad H been informed by the Defence i| Department of his return to if New Zealand m 1922. She has if now disappeared to avoid pro- || secution for bigamy. Can I now II remarry? — "Perplexed" (Wei- || lington). . ll A.: You would not be liable to jj| prosecution for bigamy, but. m 1| order to have the matter placed || on a legal footing you should || obtain a Supreme Court decree || that the marriage is void. || iiiiiimiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiMimiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiinuiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiMMiiiiiiiMiiiiMiiiiiiiiimiiiiii'iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiim;

HOUSING AND RATES. Q.: I purchased a property on February 24 last and the sale was completed on April 5. Recently I received a rate demand from the vendor with a request to pay it. The rates demanded were for the year ending March 31, 1928. Am I responsible for their payment? — "Puzzled". (Hamilton). A;: No. The vendor is liable. Had you been m possession prior to March 31 you would have to refund to the vendor the proportion accruing due after you took possession. LEGAL. Q.: I ran over and killed a valuable) dog one night. The accident was caused through the dog running across the road m front of the car. Am I liable for the damage done? — "Inquirer" (Hawera). • A.: Not unless the owner of the dog can prove that the accident was due to your negligence". Q.: (1) Would it be possible to complete an adoption without a solicitor? (2) If not, what would the total cost be? — "Adoption" (Waihi). A.: (1) It would be very difficult to do so. (2) About £10. Q.: (1) How much is a man separated from his wife compelled to pay her per week if his income is £1000 a year? (2) In the event of his death intestate, how much can she claim of his estate?— "E.B." (Auckland). A.: (1) This depends on the order of the court. Possibly up to £5 per week. (2) If there ard children onethird. If not children, but other relations, two-thirds. Q.: When paying off by monthly instalments an article costing £200, interest being at the rate of 8 per cent., can interest be charged on the full £200 for the full period allowed for payment, or """""'mmiiimmiMiiimm i nmigf shOUld the inter-

eat decrease as the amount is reduced? — "Constant Reader" (Dunedin). A.: Unless the agreement pr ovides to the contrary the interest will decrease as the principal is reduced. Where land is the article sold it ia usual for the agreement to specify the periodic rests for the calculation of interest. Q.: On March 1 I bought a new Chevrolet motorcar from a largo motor firm for £166, paying £100 by way of deposit. I became

■ ill and being unable temporarily to pay the balance asked for a few months' extension until I could collect certain insurance money. On calling the other day I found that they had sold the car. Do I forfeit the deposit?— "E.G." ( -). A. : You do not say whether you sighed an agreement or whether the firm consented to an extension, «o it Is not possible to venture any opinion. If the facts are as you state then it would certainly be most inequitable to forfeit your. £ 100. The firm ran no risk and as they deal m the car they can easily sell you another. If the forfeiture claim is set up, send further particulars. Q. : A neighbor shot at my cat and badly wounded it. Have I any remedy? — "Inquirer" (Te Kinga). i A.: You are entitled to sue for damages, but you would probably recover only a nominal amount. INSURANCE. Q.: (1) Having paid the first premium on fan endowment insurance policy can a person legally claim a refund of same if he is not satisfied with the policy and has returned it? (2) Can an insurance company compel a person to pay further premiums if policy has never been accepted by him ? — "lnsurance" (Southland) . A.: (1) No. (2) No. GENERAL. Q.: My wife had an illegitimate child before our marriage. Nobody was ever adjudged the father of it. Am I responsible for its support? — "A.G.8." (South Wellington). A.: By marrying your wife with or without the knowledge that she already had a child dependent on her, you have rendered yourself liable for its support. Q.: My late son, who was 24 years of age, and working away from home, owed £ 8 for dental work. The account has been sent to me. Am I bound to pay it? — "Worried" (Port Chalmers). A.: Only if you have benefited from his estate to that extent at least. Q.: I became surety for a certain man whose business failed with the result that I had to pay on my guarantee. Have I any claim on the principal debtor? — "Fair Play" (Clive). A.: Yes, you may sue him ior the amount you have paid.