SUPREME COURT

Evening Star, Issue 21284, 13 December 1932, Page 6

SUPREME COURT

APPORTIONMENT OF COMPENSATION MONEY An application for the apportionment of compensation money came before His Honour Mr Justice Kennedy in the Supreme Court this morning. Mr Gordon Reed (Invercargill) appeared for the plaintiff, Ivy Philpot, a widow, and Mr A. N. Haggitt appeared for the guardian of the only child. Mr Reed said the application was for the apportionment of £1,500 which was accepted in settlement of an action brought by the widow on behalf of herself and her only child in respect of the death of her husband, who was killed in a motor collision in Invercargill early this year. The only question was to the apportionment between the widow and the child. Counsel asked the court to perhaps give the widow more than the one-third mentioned in various cases, and suggested that the court should not follow the usual intestate distribution. The case was different from one where there were a number of children, and he asked the court to endeavour to give the widow at least one-half of the sum. The widow was practically destitute. Mr Haggitt submitted that the matter was clearly one for the discretion of the court. It was quite clear that it was open to the court to follow or to disregard the analogy of the statute. The test appeared to be the age of the children and the number of years for which they had to be maintained. In this case the age of the child was less than two years. His Honour said he would reserve his decision.