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Domestic abuse and forced marriage
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Applications under Part IV Family Law Act 1996 – Non-molestation and occupation orders
Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996 which came into force on 1 October 1997 provides a comprehensive set of orders to afford protection for victims of domestic abuse. Practitioners who specialise in this area will be familiar with the procedure for applying for non-molestation and occupation orders which due to the very nature of the subject matter often need to be made urgently and require a careful and considered approach given the vulnerable clients concerned.
A non-molestation order is an order prohibiting a person (the respondent) from molesting another person who is associated with the respondent or with a relevant child (FLA 1996 s 42(1)). The Domestic Violence Crime and Victims Act 2004 made breach of a non-molestation order a criminal offence.
An application for a non-molestation order can be made as either a stand-alone application or alongside an application for an occupation order which is an order regulating the occupation of a property. The FLA 1996 allows for a range of applicants...
Read the full article here.
