Divorce granted for legal cruelty where respondent failed to appear and admitted separation.
Cipro (CY)
Sintesi Legislator
Generato dall'IAThe court granted a decree nisi for divorce based on the petitioner's claim of legal cruelty. The respondent-wife failed to appear in court but submitted an affidavit denying mental cruelty while agreeing to a separation-based dissolution. The judge found that the petitioner's testimony, corroborated by his sister, established physical and mental abuse causing significant health deterioration. Consequently, the court ruled that the respondent's conduct constituted legal cruelty and granted the divorce without ordering costs.
Regesto Legislator
Generato dall'IAMatrimonial Causes Act; Divorce Act: Where a respondent fails to appear but admits to separation, a divorce may be granted on grounds of cruelty if the petitioner's evidence of mental and physical abuse is corroborated and establishes a danger to health.
Parole chiave
Generato dall'IAGiurisprudenza citata
Generato dall'IADecisioni correlate
Generato dall'IATesto completo
[*19] 1983 May 12
(A. LOIZOU, J. )
MATRIMONIAL JURISDICTION
Savvas D.Loizides,
Petitioner,
v.
Agnes Elizabeth Margaretha Conau,
Respondent.
(Matrimonial Petition No, 5/83).
Matrimonial Causes - Divorce - Cruelty - Mental and physical cruelty - Legal cruelty.
A. Hadjipanayiotou, for the Petitioner. Respondent absent.
JUDGMENT
The following judgment was delivered by: -
A. LOIZOU, J. : This is a husband's petition for divorce on the ground of cruelty by the respondent-wife. The respondent, though duly served, failed to enter an appearance or defend the proceedings but instead an affidavit sworn in London has been forwarded to the Chief Registrar of this Court whereby she sets out her own version which is a denial of mental cruelty but that she is prepared to have the marriage dissolved on the ground of a mutually agreed separation and not those stated in the petitioner' s affidavit on the 19th January, 1983, and she objects to the payment of costs. [*20]
The parties met each other in London and they were married in the District Officer's Office in Paphos under the Marriage Law, Cap. 279. They then went to England where they lived for some time but the behaviour of the respondent-wife towards the petitioner was not a kind or proper one. He has related on oath in Court about incidents of insult and abuse by her and also of an incident of hitting him with an ashtray on the bead and throwing him out of the house. His testimony is corroborated on material point by his sister Maria Loizidou, who was in London at the time and witnessed several incidents complained of and claimed to constitute legal cruelty. His health was affected and because of its deterioration he was advised by doctors to come to Cyprus for the change of environment but she refused to follow him. So much as I wish to take note of her version, the affidavit filed in the proceedings is not in compliance to the Rules of Court regarding entering an appearance and defending the proceedings.
On the totality of the circumstances before me, I find that legal cruelty has been established on the part of the respondent-wife on the petitioner husband who should not be asked to endure such conduct which is in no way excusable. During the period of their cohabitation a number of incidents constituting what in Law is considered as mental and physical cruelty, took place and her behaviour frequently repeated has no doubt caused danger to the mental and physical health of the petitioner. I need not refer to the authorities on the question of legal cruelty as I had the opportunity of reviewing them recently in a number of cases (see Peratikos v. Peratikos (1979) 1 C.L.R.341; Jabbour v. Jabbour (1981) 1 C.L.R., p.315; Joseph v. Joseph (1982) 1 C.L.R. , p.95). [*21]
In the circumstances, I grant a degree nisi on the ground of cruelty by the respondent-wife, with no order as to costs as none have been claimed.
Decree nisi granted with no order as to costs.