A court must discern between joint parental responsibilities and unilateral decisions regarding children's expenses to determine maintenance liabilities.

Introduction

[1] This was an application ("this Application") by the Wife, in encl 15, for attachment of earnings for a purported sum of MYR34,283.05, based on the terms of an order of the Sessions Court dated 8 December 2020, granted pursuant to a joint petition for divorce filed by both the Applicant Wife and Respondent Husband.

The Factual Background

[2] The Applicant and Respondent were married in March 2015, and had two children, born in July 2015 and August 2016 respectively.

[3] In July 2020, the Applicant and Respondent had filed a joint petition for divorce, and on 8 December 2020, the following Order was granted by the Sessions Court:

1. YONG JIA HUI dan CHAN SEH WAI diberikan hakpenjagaan secara bersama (joint guardianship) terhadap CTT (No. Sijil Kelahiran: *****) dan CTY (No. Sijil Kelahiran: ******) ("Anak-anak tersebut");

...

5. CHAN SEH WAI hendaklah membayar nafkah Anak-anak tersebut sebanyak Ringgit Malaysia Dua Ribu (RM2000.00) sahaja sebulan kepada YONG JIA HUI sehingga Perintah lanjut Mahkamah Yang Mulia ini;

6. CHAN SEH WAI dan YONG JIA HUI hendaklah menanggung kesemua perbelanjaan pendidikan untuk Anak-anak tersebut secara sama rata sehingga Perintah lanjut Mahkamah Yang Mulia ini;

7. CHAN SEH WAI dan YONG JIA HUI hendaklah menanggung kesemua perbelanjaan perubatan, pergigian dan optikal Anak-anak tersebut yang tidak dirangkumi oleh polisi insurans Anak-anak tersebut secara samarata sehingga Perintah lanjut Mahkamah Yang Mulia ini;

7.1 CHAN SEH WAI hendaklah menyerahkan kad perubatan (Medical Card) dari majikan CHAN SEH WAI bersama dengan senarai panel untuk pengamal am (General Practitioners) yang dirangkumi oleh kad perubatan CHAN SEH WAI kepada YONG JIA HUI;

7.2. Pihak yang membuat bayaran terlebih dahulu hendaklah membekalkan resit kepada pihak satu lagi dan pihak satu lagi tersebut hendaklah membayar balik kepada pihak yang membuat bayaran dalam tempoh (7) hari dari tarikh penerimaan resit tersebut;

...

9. Bayaran premium polisi tahunan Anak-anak tersebut yang sedia ada (existing) hendaklah ditanggung secara sama rata oleh YONG JIA HUI dan CHAN SEH WAI sehingga Perintah lanjut Mahkamah yang Mulia ini. Pihak yang telah membuat bayaran terlebih dahulu hendaklah membekalkan resit kepada pihak satu lagi dan pihak satu lagi tersebut hendaklah membayar balik kepada pihak yang membuat bayaran dalam tempoh (7) hari dari tarikh penerimaan resit tersebut;

[4] On 14 September 2022, the Applicant filed this Application pursuant to s 4 of the Married Women and Children (Enforcement of Maintenance) Act 1968 ("Married Women and Children (Enforcement of Maintenance) Act"), which reads:

Section 4 - Power of to make an attachment of earnings order

(1) Notwithstanding any written law to the contrary, the Court may, upon application by the person for whose maintenance the order is made or the guardian of such person, make an attachment of earnings order, if the Court considers it just so to make.

(2) An application for an attachment of earnings order may be made in the proceedings in which a maintenance order is applied for or in any subsequent proceedings.

[Emphasis Added]

[5] This Application was dismissed for the following reasons.

Whether Amount Claimed In Application Fell Within Definition Of 'Maintenance Order'

[6] At the outset, the Respondent had brought this Court's attention to the fact that despite referring, in the intitulement, to the Order dated 8 December 2020, the Applicant had, in her affidavit, referred to an interim order of the High Court granted in July 2019.

[7] I had to agree with Counsel for the Respond