Guardianship

To start proceedings under the Guardianship of Infants Act, you must file the following documents in Court:

• Originating Summons
• Affidavit in support of the Originating Summons

If you are filing the Originating Summons, you are called the Plaintiff. The person against whom you are filing the Originating Summons is the Defendant.

You must exhibit your Marriage Certificate to your Affidavit if you are or were married to the Defendant.

If there are Syariah Court divorce proceedings between you and the Defendant, you must file the following documents with your Originating Summons:

• a Syariah Court commencement certificate; or
• the parties’ written consent to the commencement of proceedings in the FJC, and a Syariah Court certificate of attendance

You will need to pay the appropriate filing fees for all documents filed in Court.

Please go to the Lawnet & Crimsonlogic Service Bureau to file your documents. If your documents are in order, the Registry at level 3 of the FJC at 3 Havelock Square, Singapore 059725, will accept your documents for filing. Copies of your documents will be affixed electronically with the Court seal and the sealed copies will be given to you

Serve the sealed copies on the Defendant. This is to alert him or her that you have started these proceedings in Court.

You must serve the sealed copies in one of the following ways:

• by personal service, which means that the documents must be handed to the Defendant directly by someone authorised to do so, such as a process server; or
• by e-Litigation (e-Lit) on the Defendant’s lawyer, if he or she has one, but only if the Defendant’s lawyer indicates on the documents that he or she accepts service on behalf of the Defendant.

Please note that all court documents must be filed to Court using the e-Lit system. You can file documents through e-Lit at the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.

Chinatown Point LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau
133 New Bridge Road
#19-01/02 Chinatown Point
Singapore 059413
Tel: (65) 6538 9507
Fax: (65) 6438 6350
Email: apollosb@crimsonlogic.com.sg

For more information on the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau, you may wish to visit the e-Lit website.

The officers of the FJC will be able to direct you to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau located at Chinatown Point, but will not be able to give you any specific information on the procedures and charges administered by the Service Bureau.

Your first Court hearing is likely to be a Case Conference before an Assistant Registrar of the FJC. Both you and the Defendant will be notified of the Court date by letter.

A Case Conference is conducted in chambers — meaning that the hearing can only be attended by those directly involved in the matter. You do not have to attend a Case Conference yourself if you have a lawyer. Similarly, if the Defendant has a lawyer, his or her lawyer will attend the Case Conference.

At the Case Conference, the Assistant Registrar will check if all the necessary documents have been filed in Court. If the Defendant is contesting your application, he or she will have to file an affidavit in reply.

If there is a possibility for an amicable resolution, the Assistant Registrar may refer the case for mediation or counselling.

If an amicable resolution of your dispute is reached after attendance at counselling, or after a Family Dispute Resolution Conference, a consent order may be recorded before a District Judge in chambers. This formally ends the Court proceedings.

If amicable resolution is not possible, the Originating Summons will proceed for hearing before a District Judge in chambers. The District Judge will make his or her decision on the affidavits that have been filed in Court. It is not necessary for you or the Defendant to give oral evidence before the District Judge.

After hearing both sides, the District Judge will rule on your application, and make the necessary orders. This formally ends the Court proceedings.

If you are not satisfied with the Judge’s Order, you may appeal to a Judge of the High Court.

If you wish to appeal, you must do so by filing a Notice of Appeal. The Notice must be issued within 14 days of the Judge’s Order. You must then serve the Notice on the other party within seven days of it being issued. You may wish to refer to the Family Justice Rules for further details.

Please note that officers of the Court cannot help you with your appeal papers.