VPRS 12542 Court of Petty Sessions / Magistrates' Court Maintenance Orders

The 1928 Maintenance Act and successive Marriages Acts established provisions for maintenance support to be provided by people who had left their spouses or children without means of support. Courts of Petty Sessions were empowered to hear complaints regarding desertion and neglect where these occurred independently from divorce proceedings, and to set levels and enforce the payment of maintenance. However in 1975 the Commonwealth Family Law Act came into effect and most maintenance orders are now made under this Act.Maintenance orders made in the Supreme Court were registered with the Courts of Petty Sessions/Magistrates' Courts for enforcement. The orders arrived at the Court in a sealed envelope to be registered. The register so formed was the official register of these orders; they were not recorded elsewhere.These files record the ongoing correspondence, forms, etc., associated with the enforcement of maintenance orders.The files contain a varying amount of information, the bulk of which is correspondence between the court and the plaintiff about the collection of maintenance, the frequency of payments, changes of address, etc. There are also numerous forms prescribed under the various Maintenance Rules. Occasionally photographs are found on files. These photos are of the defendant (usually the husband or father of the person receiving maintenance) and were required for identification purposes. Details regarding default summonses and other court cases may also be included.

《1928年扶养法》及后续多部《婚姻法》确立了相关条款，针对遗弃配偶或子女且未提供经济支持的行为人，强制其承担扶养保障义务。小额诉讼法院（Courts of Petty Sessions）有权审理独立于离婚程序之外的遗弃与疏于扶养投诉，并有权核定扶养费数额且强制执行。但1975年《联邦家庭法》正式生效，目前绝大多数扶养令均依据该法作出。由最高法院作出的扶养令，需登记至小额诉讼法院/治安法院（Magistrates' Courts）以完成强制执行流程。相关令状以密封信封形式提交法院办理登记，所形成的登记册即为上述令状的官方档案记录，未在其他地方留存副本。本批档案收录了与扶养令强制执行相关的各类往来函件、制式表格等资料。各档案所含信息体量不尽相同，主体内容为法院与原告之间关于扶养费收缴、支付频次、住址变更等事项的往来信函。此外还包含多部《扶养规则》规定的各类制式表格。档案中偶尔会附有照片，均为扶养费领取人的配偶或父亲（即通常意义上的被告）的肖像，用于身份核验。档案中还可能包含缺席传票及其他诉讼案件的相关细节信息。