"NEW ZEALAND TRUTH'S" SERVICE SECTION

NZ Truth, Issue 1239, 29 August 1929, Page 20

"NEW ZEALAND TRUTH'S" SERVICE SECTION

Legal

Answers To Correspondents

(CONDUCTED BY " INTERPRETER 'V . Queatlona of all kind, (exe.pt on •porting matters) are anawared here. Corr.tpond.nta must atata namea and, . addresaea, aa well aa nom-de-plume, not for publication, but aa a guarante. of good faith. No anonymoue or verbal Inquiries per t.l.phon. will ba anawarad. Questlona ahould ba written clearly In Ink or typewritten, and addreaaed to "Interpreter," o/o "N.Z. Truth," Wellington. While we Ukt no responsibility for any snawora, every endeavor will be mad* to enauro '. that they are correct, ;■■':.'

Wills

Property Rights

Q.: My brother took up a Crown section and being unable' to make the necessary declaration as he held too much land,' took the title m my name., I have been registered owner for 8 years. Have I a claim to the section? — "Constant Reader" (Darga ville) . A.: Yes. It Is entirely optional with you whether you recognise the trust m favor of your brother, which being intended to defeat the law is legally unenforceable. > .

Maintenance

•' Q. : I have recently heard that I am to be the father of an illegitimate child. At the time of my offence I was serving a term of probation. (1) Am I liable to imprisonment for committing this offence while on probation? (-2) To what punishment am I liable? (3) If I am prepared to marry the girl and she refuses, am I still liable for the maintenance of the child? — "Worried" (Wellington). A.: (1) No. (2) You are not liable to any punishment. You have committed no legal offence, but will simply be called upon to maintain the child. (3) Yes.

Marriage and Divorce

Q.: A wife after having: three children leaves her husband because he seduces her sister. Afterwards she returns to him for the sake of the children and on his promise to behave better. After living with him several years she is compelled to leave because of his cruelty. Can she sue for divorce? — "Pat" (Christchurch). A,: Yes. The adultery, although condoned, is revived by his subsequent cruelty. As she and her husband 'are both without means, this seems a case to proceed m forma pauperis. Q.: (1) My wife divorced me six years ago and has not yet got the decree made absolute. Could she now claim alimony if she lifted the papers? (2) If ' my housekeeper and I buy a house between us could my wife interfere m any way? (3) If I predeceased her would my wife have any claim on the property? — "Puzzled Constant | mi Reader" (South = Dunedin) . * • | A.: (1) Unless | the circumstances V § were extremely ' | exceptional, she | would be too late, s (2) No. (3) No. I

Q.: (1) My husband and I are separated by miitual consent. I

was forced .to sign through his illtreatment . of me

and his miscon- § duct with another | woman. He is | living with that | woman now. Can I he get a divorce | m three years? , = (2) Should I al- | low him to come =

inside when he — I

comes to see the

children? (3) If I wi'ote a letter asking him to g-fet rid of the woman and come back, when he sues for a divorce will that go against me? (4) If he writes to me accusing me of things I have never done, should I write back and deny them now?— "A.B.C." (Hawera). A.: (1) No,. as long as you defend his action and show that the separation was brought about by his wrongful conduct. (2) Not unless you like. (3) No. (4) Yes.

Q.: I have been renting a farm for 17 years. I have to pay the rent six months m advance. As for other money matters I cannot pay it, I received a lawyer's letter demanding payment of rent, plus cost of letter, £1. Must I pay the cost of letter?— " Hard Up v (Southland). A.: No.

Q. : ! I was recently served with a civil summons. The constable who served it told me to go to the clerk of the court, who would advise me as to my beat procedure. The clerk told me to sign a form, which I did. I afterwards found that I had signed a confession; What redress have I?—"Wor-' ried". (Reef ton)/ A.: If you deny that the money is owing and wish to defend the matter, you should instruct a solicitor to make application to have the judgment set aside' If, as your letter implies, you admit that the money ,is owing, you cannot do anything. If a judgment summons is issued, and you have not the means to pay, you can oppose the making of an order on that ground. Q.: Is it legal for a Justice of the Peace to read through a document before he signs it. Is he only to witness the- signature or swear the declaration with the person or is he allowed to read through the document? — "Argument" (Dunedin). *

A.: He is perfectly entitled to read the document if he so desires, but it is not usual for him so to do. He is entitled to know the nature of the document he is signing:. If it is a declaration or a summons he is not concerned with the circumstances. But if he sees that it is a warrant for someone's arrest, he should not sign without full inquiry as to the propriety of the warrant.

Compensation

Q.: (1) If I shoot a dog m the act of worrying my i sheep, can I claim damages from the owner of dog for sheep worried? (2) Being 20 sheep short but can only show the owner 10, can I claim to the value of 20 sheep? — "Rex" (Owaka). A.:\(l) Yes. (2) You must prove that the dog killed the 20 sheep.' The mere shortage, apart from corroborating circumstances, ' would not of itself be sufficient proof.

Wages and Pensions

Q.:' .Where a person who has. been entitled to a pension since 1917 has only recently claimed lt, can she apply for the arrears which have accumulated since 1917?— " Pensions" (Oamaru). Jl.'. No.

Q. : If a woman dies intestate leaving a husband and son, how will her estate be distributed?— " Farmer" (Invercargill). ' A.: Two-thirds to the son, the remainder to her husband.

Q.: Widow, with no children, purchased her late husband's residence and section. She re-married. Second husband wanted the property; she refused to let him have it; therefore he ill-treated her. She made a will leaving all . her property to a friend with the exception of a few shillings. What claim has the second husband on the property at her death? — "Felix" (Auckland). A.: He can apply under the "Family Protection Act, 1908," to have provision made for him from the- estate. If it can be proved that he. was guilty of cruelty that will probably defeat any claim he might othewise have.

General

Q.: If compulsory military training is against the principles of the Presbyterian Church, can young men of that church <be fined- for refusing- to attend drill? — "Ignorant" (Marton). A.: Yes. Your question by inference libels the church, but even if it were against the principles of the church it is for the Legislature and not the church to say who is to drill. Any claim for exemption must be based — not on the principles of the church — but on the conscience -of the individual.

Q.: Ifil draw a prize of several hundred pounds m a lottery, am I liable to pay income-tax on money so obtained ?— "lnquirer" (Greymouth) .

A.: No, Income-tax is only payable on the, earnings of a business, and betting m lotteries cannot be said to be your business. In any case, the courts m England have held that an income entirely derived from betting is not subject to income-tax. Q.: I aim engaged to a girl who is a school-teacher, and who entered into a bond to teach for three years after leaving Training College. She has completed 18 months' teaching, and we now desire to get married. (1) Is this I bond binding on iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimimimimiiiiimiy: her? (2) If we

get married, can she refuse to teach anywhere but m the town where we intend to live? — "R.M." (Heme Ray). A.: (1) Yes. If she fails to complete her term she will have to pay damages. (2) No. •■: Q.: I stopped my car at a bridge to allow cattle to cross m front of me. One of the animals broke away and jumped on to the front of my car, causing about £30 damage. Can I recover this from the owner of the cattle ? — " A.T. " (Kilbirnie). A.: The obligation for damage done by cattle being driven along

a road is not so

great as that for cattle wandering or trespassing. In the case of driven cattle you can only recover if you can prove that the drover was" negligent. Here as there were two drovers and the bridge was a narrow one they should have been able to prevent the animal breaking back. Prima facie, you should be able to recover.

Q.: My wife contracted a debt before our marriage. She is now quite unable to pay, What is the position? —"Kiwi" (Lower Hutt). A.: Yot. are under no liability. Unless your wife has property on which execution may be levied the creditor has no means of obtaining the money.

Q.: Where a man is charged with theft of goods' worth £7/11/6 and elects to be dealt with, summarily, what is the maximum penalty which Justices may impose? — "Stepson" (Ashburton). A.': Six months' imprisonment or a fine of £20. (2) Apply for information to the local Inspector of Awards.

Replies In Brief

"Sister" (Wellington) : Auckland Savings Bank is the only one. — "Ye Moana" (Blenheim): Your second inquiry was not answered' because the answer was supplied. Otago and Southland are separate provinces. — "Ohakune" (Ohakune): Write to any Sydney paper. — "Anxious" (Christchurch) . It ls not a half-way house. — "J.E.H." (Blenheim): John Barrymore played the; principal' role.— "Black to Win" (Wanganui): There is nothing to prevent you making a set yourself. — "Enquirer" (Christchurch): No. He Is not responsible m any way.— "Puzzled" (Amberley): The only thing for you to do ls to advertise m a Wellington paper. — "Perplexed" (Hawkes Bay): You should apply to the court for, a maintenance order. No court costs are payable on this matter. The amount you will be awarded will depend on all the circumstances of the case. — ''A.W." (Dunedin) : Your rights are governed by the provisions of the mortgage. If there Is no power to repay before the expiration of the term you cannot pay off before unless the mortgagee consents. — "Constant Reader" (New Plymouth): Yes. Rebates are not allowed If payments are m arrear. — "Happy" (Waipawa): She can apply to the court for permission to marry. She can leave home. — "X.Y.Z." (City): Yes. They are not bound to take instalments. — "Curious" (HawkesNßay) : (1) Normally to father. (2) It is immaterial.— "Kia Ora" (Invercargill): The Hospital Board will probably accept a small weekly payment m setlement of the account if you point out your position to them. — "A.D." (Auckland): You will not be guilty of bigamy m so .doing. — "Fossick" (Takapuna): No. — "Jakes" (Hastings): (1) If the account is m your name you can. (2) About £3/10/-.— "Anxious" (Feilding): You can claim the pension. — "Anxious" (Horotin) : You have no claim to the rent at all. The sale by your father was valid.— "Anxious" (Mokal): This charge is not excessive. — "General Repairs" (Dunedin): (1) No. (2) No.— "Constant Reader" (Halswell): You have no remedy. — "Pupil" (Awakuri): You are bound by the school discipline and must obey the rules.— ''Constant Reader" (South Otago): (1) 15/- a day to start for a seven-day week, married, £39 a year extra and uniform allowance. (2) single man £200, less . £35 board and lodging; married £220 less £20. (3) married, £215 plus £30 house allowance; warder-Instructor £235 plus £30, and both free uniform and bonus. (4) 38 Inches' normal. (5) You will have to put your name on a list and await your chance. — "A.0.G1" (Palmerston North): Unknown.