LEGAL INQUIRY COLUMN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 139, 15 June 1939, Page 27

LEGAL INQUIRY COLUMN.

(By BARRISTER AT-LAW.>

fl.etters of Inquiry will be answered every week in thi« column. As far as possible they will be dealt 'with in the order in jvhich they are received, ami replies will be inserted with the least possible ilelay.)

H'IXKST.— f1) As your tenancy is under tin' Fair Rents Art. your landlord cannot increase your responsibility except |iy having the fair rent fixed at a liiirhiT figure. The rent is. therefore, payable oil Iho premises. ami if lie wishes you to rrmit rent to varying addresses. he should pay the cost of remittance himself. -pj,,. f iK .- that your landlord declines to acknowledge? receipts of payment sent to him l>y post also justifies you in refusing 10 use Ihe post as a medium of payment unless he dearly acknowledges tlat the posting hy you of a letter lontaining rent is' in fact payment by you of that rent. This throws upon him tin' responsibility in the event of a letter going astray. His altitude has been so unreasonable that it» is only lair that lie should take that responslbilitv, because lie gives you 110 opportunity of discovering whether the rent lias been received or not. (:5| You should write to your landlord recounting the above facts and telling him that, you will have the rent regularly for him 011 the premises, or thai you will pay it into a bank account as before.

KN I(J I IT.--The adjoining occupier will he liable if any damage is caused ny tl'.e heap of earth. You should asK him at once to remove the earth ai.d point out 10 liiur the possibility of i- rloiu da 1111 1 g*\ MAIITIIA. -You should receive an a ;'e hem-lit of £7X per jear. ('■ Plleb smaller sum as will make the total of ynur income and your husband's income up tn iJUX. EI.AM. (li and (2) Tho landlord cannot impose new terms on you. If, however, the premises are subject lo the Fair Items Act, the fact tm.t yt.u are subletting at a profit is ground for recovering possession. If the premises are not under the l";.ir Items Act, the landlord may tern.mat-' the tenancy if lie does not approve of subletting. (31 (4) and Cii If lour tenants are protected by the fair Items Act. you cannot rai-s; ibe rent without an order from a magisti;. te. if they are not subject to tile I'air items -vet. and the tenant lias remained in possession after the expiration of a valid notice to quit, your remedy is to sue for the arrears of rent, null for possession. The costs in the lirst place ate payable by you. but yu'i may succeed in recovering them, or part of tliem. from the tenant.

It is in the discretion of llie Commission to reduce the rati- of your unemployment benefit if \oin" wife or any of your children receive any incorao from any source. In case the total resources of the f'.mily, together with your benefit, must not exceed £4 per week. MINI) AT ItEXT. Or.e calendar month's notice in writing is necessary to terminate the tenancy. It is jirolm ile. however. that if you discuss the matter with your landlord. 3011 will he able to arrange for a shorter notice. ACCOUNT- — If in fact the _ charge agreed upon for tiie work w.. ■ - . vou cuu not lie obliged In pay more. Your difficulty may. howevr. le !■• prove ihe facts. You should r> iriii. l tin- d"l:list of the original arrangement. 1/ANDI.UKI). YOll should give the tenant a calendar month's notice in writing. If he does not vacate v-'.l should >ue at once for possession. 1 11 may also claim damages from lie prior tenant. STAKITK. A person ill receipt of 1111 age benefit ma.v have a total income. apart front t lie benefit, of 1.. - p'-r year. YKRY WOltltlKU. You appear to be entith'd to a full age b.'uettr. I'tINSTANT KKAUKI!.— If a wife wishes lo obtain permanent maintenance Iron) her liti-hand. she should apply as *.«n aspossi ttie after obtaining tbe decree ahs,,ln!'. t 11 less there are exceptional circumstances a delay of months is likely to lie fatal.

;.K. A legacy is m>t Income ,:nd is not liable f"i- tile Social Security <-ii «i iVOIM! VISH.—The interest was n"l due until April. nntl was not rtc. ived until April. It hliouUl. therefore, bo included iu your return of itiiomu for th" year ended March 111. l'J.".: 1 , If. however, you have included ilic balance of the interest in your previous returns, there is little objection to leaving your present return as it Is. HOHT. —Wo far as the mortgage is concerned, all that he requires is the money repaid. For your part, however, you require that the title to your land will show that the mortgage lias been repaid. Tor this purpose a special form of discharge must lie signed, and stamped and registered, and this lf» what you have been asked to pay for. If yon do not have n form of discharge ilul.v signed by the mortgagee you may have considerable expense to meet should the mortgagee leave Xew Zea-_ land or die. I.lt. I do not think that the matter is one for the postmaster. I think you should complain to the police. ~"HII.DHKN.—,A II persons .iver On years of age are entitled to medical benefits and parents or guardians of children under lti years of ag" may claim benefit* for tlieir children. iXXIOI'K ("Ol'l'l.H. You and your wife appear to be eligible for an age benefit of £1S per year each. Your letter was answered a fortnight a Co. I'.A. — I think that you may safely describe yourself ns a widdw. As a matter of law your husband is deemed to have died in 1913. Yoli should not hesitate to apply for an age benefit. SOAD.—Money received from the sale of land, or compensation for !:■ taken, is not income and not liable for .Social Security charge. 3SCAI.OXIA.— It is an offence to plant trees whether for the purpose of making a live fence or not 011 or alongside nny boundary line without the previous consent of the occupier of the adjoining land. It has been decided by the Court that trees may be planted two feet from the boundary. Your neighbour's! remedy must be exercised within six months of tile planting of the trees. I'robnbly you could enter into i.u agreement with your neighbour as to the height to which the trees shall he allowed to grow, and he may then withdraw his objection. I I'M AX.—(l) and (.1) The occupier of any fenced land In artificial grass or under cultivation may, subject to certain conditions, destroy any pigs or poultry found trespassing upon such land. A threat of applying this remedy will probably have the desired effect. (2) If you complain to the County Council about the keeping of dogs on the road you will probably find that you will obtain satisfaction. (3) Wholesale slaughtering is permissible only in a licensed slaughterhouse, but any bona fide farmer whose ordinary farming operations include the raising and fattening of stock may slaughter stock on his farm for sale, provided that the number of stock slaughtered does not exceed one head of cattle and five head of other stock per week. If slaughtering on a greater scale than this Is being carried out. you should complain to the County. iNXIOCS. —You are not eligible for any age benefit under the Social Security Scheme.

O.P.—You will he deemed to bo n Ttrltish subject In any part of the Empire. \VOKI!IKI». — It is neees!.ar.v t" knf.w the history of the embalmment before you ciin lie advised. In general a person is entitled to have his land supported by tiie adjoining land, and if an excavation i* made on the adjoining land a retaining wall should bo built to supply the necessary support in place of (lie earth that ha» been removed.