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286 Singapore Academy of Law Journal (2003) differing views in two High Court decisions, in this regard—at Section 6.4.3 below) 6.3 If the civil suit and the ancillary matters need not be heard by the same court 182 If, after considering all the factors set out in Section 6.1(a)-(d) above, it appears that the civil suit and the ancillary matters need not be heard by the same court, then the two suits may either proceed concurrently, or one set of proceedings may be stayed until the other is disposed of. 183 An example of where the latter has been done is the case of Tian Ah Poon (m.w.) v Teo Guan Seng and Anor. 112 The wife in this case had filed a divorce petition on 22 February 2001. A decree nisi was granted on 23 April 2002, and the ancillary matters were adjourned to be heard later. On 9 April 2002, the wife, a shareholder in a company of which the husband was a director and shareholder, commenced an action in the High Court (in OS 488 of 2002) under Section 216 (Personal remedies in cases of oppression or injustice) of the Companies Act (Cap. 50) against the company itself, the husband (who was a director and shareholder of the company), and other directors and shareholders of the company (5 defendants in all). The wife alleged that the husband had deliberately increased his shareholding in the company to dilute her interest in the same, and prayed for, inter alia, an order that the husband purchase all the shares owned by the wife at a fair value to be determined by the court or by an independent valuer. The wife then applied to transfer the divorce proceedings to the High Court and have it consolidated with OS 488 of 2002. The High Court did not make the order for transfer and consolidation, but instead ordered that the ancillary matters in the Family Court be stayed pending the final determination (and any appeal therefrom) of the High Court suit. 113 184 Generally, if a party starts a civil suit in connection with the 3 rd party issue (either before or after the divorce petition is filed), and the matter is not resolved (or not close to being resolved) before the ancillary matters are adjourned to chambers for hearing, and there is no application for the civil suit to also be heard by the Family Court, the Family Court will, in all probability, adjourn the hearing of the ancillary 112 unreported, Divorce Petition No. 600679/2001 113 Order made 24 June 2002. No judgment was written by the High Court in this matter.
15 SAcLJ Matrimonial Assets and the 3 rd Party 287 matters until the civil suit has been dealt with 114 . This is what was done in the case of Liu Ah Moy, supra, where the ancillary matters were heard only after orders were made in the wife’s originating summons filed in the High Court to seek, inter alia, a declaration that the husband’s mistress held her half share of the said property in trust for the husband. This was also done in the case of Soh Lai Chan, supra, where the wife took out an originating summons in the High Court under Section 73B of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act (Cap 61) seeking a declaration against the husband and his brother that the transfer of the husband’s shares in a certain company to his brother was void as against her. The ancillary matters proceedings before the Family Court had been stayed pending the determination of this suit. 6.4 If the civil suit and the ancillary matters should be heard by the same court 185 If it is decided that the civil suit should be heard by the same court dealing with the ancillary matters, then the question arises of what are the applicable provisions governing the transfer of the cases to the same court. 6.4.1 Civil suit filed and ancillary matters pending in courts of the same jurisdictional limits 186 If a civil suit is filed in: (a) the District Court (civil division) 115 and the ancillary matters are pending in the Family Court; or (b) the High Court and the ancillary matters are pending in the High Court there is no need for an application for either the civil suit or the ancillary matters to be transferred to a court of a different jurisdictional limit. 114 However, the court may also render a decision on the ancillary matters first, without waiting for the civil suit to be heard. In such cases, the court can make alternative orders—i.e. one set of orders on the basis that there will be a certain outcome in respect of the civil suit, and one set on the basis that there will be an opposite outcome. (In this regard, see the case of Leong Choon Kum (m.w.) v Chia Kin Tuck, supra, discussed in Section 2.3.2) 115 The position if the civil suit is filed in the Magistrate’s Court is dealt with in Section 6.4.3.
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