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41 |
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Second
Session, 46th General Assembly 58
Elizabeth II, 2009 |
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AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW
WITH RESPECT TO |
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Received and Read the First Time................................................................................................... |
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Second |
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Committee............................................................................................................................................ |
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Third |
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Royal Assent...................................................................................................................................... |
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HONOURABLE
FELIX COLLINS Minister of Justice and Attorney General |
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Ordered
to be printed by the Honourable House of Assembly |
EXPLANATORY NOTE This Bill would amend various of the province's Acts and regulations to reflect recent developments in the law respecting spouses. The principal thrust of the amendments is to change the language of provisions that currently, either explicitly or implicitly, assume that spouses must be members of the opposite sex. |
A AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW WITH RESPECT TO THE DEFINITION OF SPOUSE Analysis 1. Short title 2. Chattels Real Act 3.
City of 4.
City of 5. Evidence Act 6. Family Homes Expropriation Act 7. Family Law Act 8. Fatal Accidents Act 9. Jury Act, 1991 10. Legal Aid Regulations 11. Rules of the Supreme Court, 1986 Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows: Short title 1. This Act may be cited as the Spouse Amendment Act. CHATTELS RSN1990 cC-11 2. Subsection 4(1) of the Chattels Real Act is repealed and the following substituted: Disposition of chattels real 4. (1) Two
persons who are spouses of one another shall, for all purposes of acquisition
of an interest in a chattel real, under a disposition made or coming into
operation after RSN1990 cC-15 3. Subsection 152(2) of the City of Corner Brook Act is repealed and the following substituted: (2) Where a person who has a spouse pays real
property tax both the person and his or her spouse are exempt from the poll tax
imposed by the city. RSN1990 cC-16 4. Subsection 151(2) of the City of Mount Pearl Act is repealed and the following substituted: (2) Where a person who has a spouse pays real
property tax both the person and his or her spouse are exempt from the poll tax
imposed by the city. EVIDENCE ACT RSN1990 cE-16 5. (1) Subsection 2(1) of the Evidence Act is amended by deleting the words "husbands and wives" and substituting the word "spouses". (2) Subsection 3(1) of the Act is amended by deleting the words "husband or wife" and substituting the word "spouse". (3) Paragraph 4(a) of the Act is amended by deleting the words "wife or husband" and substituting the word "spouse". (4) Paragraph 4(c) of the Act is amended by deleting the words "husband or wife" and substituting the word "spouse". (5) Section 6 of the Act is repealed and the
following substituted: Spouses not compellable 6. A person is not compellable to disclose a communication made to him or her by his or her spouse during the marriage. FAMILY HOMES EXPROPRIATION ACT RSNL1990 cF-1 6. Item 3(c) of the Schedule to the Family Homes Expropriation Act is repealed
and the following substituted: (c) 2 persons, with or without children, unmarried, living together as spouses, notwithstanding there is no tie in blood or in law; FAMILY LAW ACT RSNL1990 cF-2 7. (1) Paragraph 2(1)(e) of the Family Law Act is amended by deleting the words "a man and woman" and substituting the number and word "2 persons". (2) Section 29 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted: Business assets 29. Where
one spouse has contributed work, money or money's worth in respect of the
acquisition, management, maintenance, operation or improvement of a business
asset of the other spouse, the contributing spouse may apply to the court and
the court shall by order (a) direct the other spouse to pay an amount that
the court orders to compensate the contributing spouse; or (b) award a share of the interest of the other
spouse in the business asset to the contributing spouse in accordance with the
contribution, and the court shall determine and assess
the contribution without regard to their spousal relationship or the fact that
the acts constituting the contribution are those of a reasonable spouse in the
circumstances. (3) Subsection 31(1) of the Act is amended by
deleting the words "husband and wife" and substituting the word
"spouses". (4) Section 62 of the Act is amended by deleting the words "A man and a woman" and substituting the words "Two persons". (5) Subsection 69(1) of the Act is amended by deleting the words "a man and a woman" and substituting the number and word "2 persons". FATAL ACCIDENTS ACT RSNL1990 cF-6 8. Section 4 of the Fatal Accidents Act is repealed and the following substituted: By whom action brought 4. An
action under this Act is for the benefit of the spouse, partner, parent and child
of the person whose death is caused, and is brought by and in the name of the
executor or administrator of the person deceased. JURY ACT, 1991 SNL1991 c16 9. Subsection 10(2)(a) of the Jury Act, 1991 is repealed and the following substituted: (a) "family unit" includes 2 persons who are spouses of one another and a relative of one of the spouses residing in the same dwelling; and LEGAL AID REGULATIONS CNLR 1010/96 10. Paragraph 1(h) of Schedule E of the Legal Aid Regulations is repealed and
the following substituted: (h) "spouse" means an adult living with the applicant as a spouse, regardless of legal marital status. RULES OF THE SUPREME COURT, 1986 11. (1) Rule 56.02(a) of the Rules of the Supreme Court, 1986 is repealed and the following substituted: (a) spouse; (2) Rule 56.07(b) of the rules is repealed and the following substituted: (b) that neither witness to the will is a beneficiary or the spouse of a beneficiary named in the will or, if so, that a named beneficiary or the spouse of a named beneficiary is such a witness; and ŠEarl G. Tucker, Queen's Printer |