1938 Present: Koch J.

MORRIS v. MORRIS.

S. C. No. 1-Divorce.

Divorce-Action by wife resident in Ceylon-Husband domiciled in England-Domicil of wile-Requirement of Order in Council, 1936-Indian and Colonial Divorce Jurisdiction Act, 1926, s. 1.

By the Ceylon Divorce Jurisdiction Order in Council, 1936, the provisions of section 1 of the Indian and Colonial Divorce Jurisdiction Act, 1926, were applied to Ceylon: Under that section, read together with the terms of the Order in Council, the Supreme Court was vested with jurisdiction to grant a divorce. where the parties to the marriage are British subjects domiciled in England or Scotland, provided the petitioner resides in Ceylon at the time of presenting the petition, that the place where the parties last resided together was in Ceylon, and that either the marriage was solemnized in Ceylon or the adultery or the Crime complained of was committed in Ceylon.

The petitioner asked for a divorce from her husband on the ground of malicious desertion. The petitioner alleged that she was a permanent resident of Ceylon, which was her domicil of origin and that her husband was an Englishman domiciled in England at the time of marriage.

Held, that the petitioner by her marriage acquired a new domicil- the domicil of her husband-and that she was therefore a British subject domiciled in England within the meaning of the section.

THIS was a petition for divorce presented to the Supreme Court under the Ceylon Divorce Jurisdiction Order in Council, 1936, by the petitioner, who was resident in Ceylon, against her husband who was an Englishman domiciled in England at the time of her marriage.

N. Nadarajah (with him O. L. de Kretser, Jr.), for petitioner. -The Indian and Colonial Jurisdiction Act of 1926 (16 & 17 Geo. V., C. 40) confers jurisdiction on Courts in India in certain cases with respect to dissolution of marriages, the parties to which were domiciled in England or Scotland. This Act has been extended to Ceylon by Order of His Majesty in Council published in Government Gazette of July 1, 1936, and entitled ?The Ceylon Divorce Jurisdiction Order in Council, 1936?. This

Order in Council confers jurisdiction upon the Supreme Court of Ceylon. Special rules have been framed by the Lord Chancellor in regard to procedure and to the allegations that the petition for divorce should contain. These rules will be found in Government Gazette of July 2, 1936: Statutory Rules and Orders No. 742 of 1936. In this case the respondent is an Englishman domiciled in England and is now residing in Surrey. The petitioner is an inhabitant of Ceylon and was- married to respondent in Ceylon. By marriage her domicil became English-vide Dicey, p. 134 of 3rd ed. Prior to Matrimonial Causes Act of 1937 a divorce in England was allowed only on adultery and desertion. By Act of 1937 operating from January 1, 1937 (1 Ed. VIII. & 1 Geo. VI., C. 57) the law has been amended and malicious desertion is made a ground for divorce, vide section 2 of the Act. In this case the petitioner alleges desertion without cause for over a period of 3 years. The petition has now been amended to conform to: requirements of rules framed by the Lord Chancellor and there is an affidavit of petitioner deposing the facts necessary to obtain a decree of divorce. In the case of Le Mesurier v. Le Mesurier 1 it was held that the District Court in Ceylon had no jurisdiction to grant divorce in the case of a married person who had domicil out of Ceylon, vide also Case v. Case 2. It was to remedy the hardship caused by this legal situation that the Indian and Colonial Jurisdiction Act of 1926 was passed. This Act has now been extended to Ceylon and the Supreme Court has been granted Original Civil Jurisdiction to make decrees for dissolution of marriages where parties are British subjects domiciled in England or Scotland on grounds on which decree for dissolution