CHAPTER 4REGISTRATION OF CHILD CUSTODY ORDERS
Interpretation
4.1 In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires–
“the Act” means the Family Law Act 1986(1);
“appropriate court” means the High Court in England and Wales or the High Court in Northern Ireland or, in relation to a specified dependant territory, the corresponding court of that territory, as the case may be;
“appropriate register” means the sheriff court book in which there is registered the action in which the Part I order was made;
“corresponding court”, in relation to a specified dependent territory, means the corresponding court specified in relation to that territory in Schedule 3 to the Family Law Act 1986 (Dependent Territories) Order 1991(2);
“Part I order” has the meaning assigned to it by sections 1, 32, 42(5) and 42(6) of the Act(3);
“proper officer” means the Secretary of the Principal Registry of the Family Division of the High Court in England and Wales or the Master (Care and Protection) of the High Court in Northern Ireland or, in relation to a specified dependent territory, the corresponding officer of the appropriate court in that territory, as the case may be; and
“specified dependent territory” means a territory specified in column 1 of Schedule 1 to the Family Law Act 1986 (Dependent Territories) Order 1991.
Applications for registration of Part I order in another court
4.2—(1) An application under section 27 of the Act (registration) to register a Part I order made by a sheriff court in an appropriate court shall be made by letter to the sheriff clerk of the court in which the order was made.
(2) An application under paragraph (1) of this rule shall be accompanied by–
(a)a copy of the letter of application;
(b)an affidavit by the applicant;
(c)a copy of that affidavit;
(d)a certified copy of the interlocutor making the Part I order and any variation thereto which is still in force; and
(e)any other document relevant to the application together with a copy of it.
(3) The affidavit required under this rule shall set out–
(a)the name and address of the applicant and his right under the Part I order;
(b)the name and date of birth of the child in respect of whom the Part I order was made, the present whereabouts or suspected whereabouts of the child and the name of any person with whom he is alleged to be;
(c)the name and address of any other person who has an interest in the Part I order;
(d)the appropriate court in which it is sought to register the Part I order;
(e)whether the Part I order is in force;
(f)whether the Part I order is already registered and, if so, where it is registered; and
(g)details of any order known to the applicant which affects the child and is in force in the jurisdiction in which the Part I order is to be registered.
Transmission of application for registration
4.3—(1) Unless it appears to the court that the Part I order is no longer in force, the sheriff clerk shall send the documents mentioned in section 27(3) of the Act to the proper officer of the court in which the Part I order is to be registered.
(2) For the purposes of section 27(3) of the Act the prescribed particulars of any variation of a Part I order which is in force shall be a certified copy of the interlocutor making any such variation.
(3) On sending an application under paragraph (1) of this rule, the sheriff clerk shall record the date and particulars of the application and the Part I order in the appropriate register.
(4) On receiving notification from the appropriate court that the Part I order has been registered in that court under section 27(4) of the Act, the sheriff clerk shall record the date of registration in the appropriate register.
Notification of refusal of application
4.4 Where the court refuses to send an application under rule 4.2 to the appropriate court on the ground that the Part I order is no longer in force, the sheriff clerk shall notify the applicant in writing of the court’s decision.
Retention of application and related documents
4.5 The sheriff clerk shall retain the letter of application under rule 4.2 together with any documents which accompanied it and which are not transmitted to the appropriate court under section 27(3) of the Act.
Cancellation or variation of registered Part I order
4.6—(1) Where the court revokes, recalls or varies a Part I order which it has made and which has been registered under section 27(4) of the Act, the sheriff clerk shall–
(a)send a certified copy of the appropriate interlocutor to the proper officer of the court in which the Part I order is registered;
(b)record the transmission of the certified copy in the appropriate register; and
(c)record the revocation, recall or variation in the appropriate register.
(2) On receiving notification from the court in which the Part I order is registered that the revocation, recall or variation has been recorded, the sheriff clerk shall record that fact in the appropriate register.
Section 1 was amended by the Children Act 1989 (c. 41), Schedule 13, paragraph 63 and Schedule 15, the Age of Legal Capacity (Scotland) Act 1991 (c. 50) Schedule 1, paragraph 44, and the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, Schedule 4, paragraph 41(2); section 42(6) was amended by the Children Act 1989, Schedule 13, paragraph 71(2) and Schedule 15.