LEGAL INQUIRY COLUMN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 143, 18 June 1936, Page 23

LEGAL INQUIRY COLUMN.

(By BARRISTBR-AT-LAW.) [Letters of inquiry will bo answered every week in this column. As far as possible they will be dealt with in the order in which tliey are received, and replies will be inserted with the least possible delay.]

E.M.E.D. —(1) The slight inconvenience to which you are put does not seem to me to warrant disturbing arrangements which in other respects are satisfactory. You could, of course, ask whether payment could conveniently be made in another manner, but 1 would not press the point. (2) Your husband is bound to maintain you, so long as lie is able, during your life. (3) If you leave New Zealand it would be advisable to obtain an order of the Court for maintenance lirst, so that In the event of lion-jmy-ment steps could bo taken in New Zealand for enforcing payment without the need for you to return. NUISANCE. —You are not entitled to lay poison in your district. You do not appear to have any legal remedy. ANXIOUS.—It would be an advantage to pay off the mortgage, but even if you did you would still lie a long way off qualifying for a pension. You will have to encroach on capital to keep going, but after all most of us expect to live on our savings in our old age. CONSTANT READER. —You will need a solicitor. Jt Is his duty to advise you and to make your application to the Court for leave to proceed as a pauper. The matters you mention are not grounds for a divorce. NORWICH ST.—lf the allegations are groundless it is possible that the persons to whom the complaints have been made will disclose to yotr their source of Information. I do not think that the police will take action, but there is uo harm In asking them to do so. / FARMER.—You should apply for relief if you cannot come to an arrangement with your mortgagee. It Is quite likely that interest will be reduced to u per cent.

ANXIOUS.— You do not mention what balance is due to you, but it appears to be about £ tSOO. In those circumstances you will not be eligible for a pension.

L.B.—ir .your husband will not pay you maintenance your only real remedy is to sue. It Is not necessary to seek a separation order as well, and you can obtain an order for maintenance without obtaining an order for separation. WORRIED.—If you leave home at the express wish of your husband he will be bound to maintain you and the children. It would be advisable, however, to have the fact recorded that the separation was dictated by your husband, or was mutually agreed upon, otherwise you may have difficulty later in disproving an allegation that you deserted your husbnnu. It would be advisable to consult a solicitor and have a proper agreement for -Separation and maintenance signed when you leave, or before you leave. '1 lie amount of maintenance that you should receive depends oil your husband's income, and he should also allow from ten to fifteen shillings each for the children. CONSTANT READER.—You should write to the Employment Department and have your husband's allowance increased' to the scale allowed a married man, and provision can then be made by your husband lor you. W.E.L.—Your lodge will be more likely to make you a loan than anyone else. The value of your security depends on how long you have been contributing. Whether (in outsider would lend will depend on the rules of the lodge. G.S.H.G. —You will not be responsible in any way whatever happens. J H.W. —1£ you propose to erect the fence on the boundary you should give notice to your neighuour. In the circumstances it would be wiser to erect the fence entirely on your side of the boundary. The old fence is joint proper! v, and should not be dismantled without your neighbour's consent. You may erect a fence on your own land to any height you wish. Jf.O.N. —You are eligible to adopt the boy. The father may appear before a magistrate in liis lionle town and consent, and his consent would then be forwarded to the local court. A.R.—A judicial separation is a separation ordered or decreed by a judge, whereas most separation orders are ■ made by magistrates. There are technical differences which would not interest you. The guilty party cannot obtain a divorce if the innocent party defends the petition, and, of course, proves that the separation was not (caused by her but by the husband's wrongful acts. CONSTANT READER.—I am not, able to answer your question, as the text of the Act as finally passed is not yet available. Your tenancy appears to be a weekly tenancy, terminable on one week's notice. URGENT.—(I) If you have any genuine doubt as to the agent's authority to collect the rent you are justilied in withholding it until he produces proof of his authority. The fact that he has already deceived you in one respect, docs throw doubt on his bona-lides. I (:'* I would advise you to consult! •9Z Labour Department Inspector as to the other matters mentioned iii your lotter. I