SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Loh Wai Mooi, Wang Liansheng, Valerie Goh and Petrina Tan, Bih Li & Lee LLP
Alternatively, service may be properly effected on a party via their solicitors, who have indicated that they have instructions to accept service on the party’s behalf. Despite personal service of the originating application not having been properly effected, personal service may be deemed to have been effected on a person if: • the person to be served files a notice to contest; • the person to be served files a reply; or • the applicant (i) files an affidavit of service exhibiting any document to indicate that the person to be served has received the originat - ing application; and (ii) the court is satisfied that the document exhibited indicates that the person to be served has received the originat - ing application. In civil proceedings, the court’s approval is gen - erally required for service of the originating appli - cation out of Singapore. However, Part 7 Rule 10 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 states that the court’s approval is not required for service of an originating application or other court documents relating to any proceedings under Part 10 of the Women’s Charter 1961 out of Singapore. Religious Marriages and Divorces The Women’s Charter 1961 does not apply to marriages solemnised or registered under Mus - lim law. Instead, the Administration of Muslim Law Act 1966 governs Muslim marriages, with the Syariah Court deciding matters concerning divorces in Muslim marriages. Customary marriages entered into before 2 June 1967 are also recognised as valid marriages. Post 2 June 1967, marriages solemnised in Sin -
gapore are only recognised as valid marriages if they are in accordance with the Women’s Char - ter 1961. Judicial Separation/Annulment An individual may file an originating applica - tion for judicial separation based on any of the six ‘“facts” as set out in “Grounds for Divorce”. Parties may file for judicial separation prior to the three-year time limit. Thereafter, they may commence divorce proceedings on the basis of an irretrievable breakdown of their marriage (as detailed previously) in order to obtain a divorce. Following a judgment of judicial separation, the parties are no longer obliged to cohabit with each other. Parties that are judicially sepa - rated (but remain married) and who pass away intestate are not entitled to claim for part of the deceased spouse’s estate. Parties may also choose to annul their marriage if it fulfils the requirements for annulment under Sections 105 or 106 of the Women’s Charter 1961. There are two types of annullable mar - riages: “void” or “voidable marriages”. The fol - lowing civil marriages are void under Section 105 of the Women’s Charter 1961: • a marriage between persons who are Mus - lims; • a marriage between persons who, at the date of the marriage, are not respectively male and female; • a marriage where one party is already lawfully married to a spouse under any law, religion, custom or usage; • a marriage where one party is below the age of 18 years (and there is no authorisation by a special marriage licence);
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