Family Law (Maintenance of Spouses and Children) Act, 1976

Discharge, variation and termination of maintenance order.

6.—(1) The Court may—

(a) discharge a maintenance order at any time after one year from the making thereof, on the application of the maintenance debtor, where it appears to the Court that, having regard to the maintenance debtor's record of payments pursuant to the order and to the other circumstances of the case, the persons for whose support it provides will not be prejudiced by the discharge thereof, or

(b) discharge or vary a maintenance order at any time, on the application of either party, if it thinks it proper to do so having regard to any circumstances not existing when the order was made or, if it has been varied, when it was last varied, or to any evidence not available to that party when the maintenance order was made or, if it has been varied, when it was last varied.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in subsection (1) of this section, the Court shall, on application to it under that subsection, discharge that part of a maintenance order which provides for the support of a maintenance creditor where it appears to it that the maintenance creditor, being the spouse of the maintenance debtor, has deserted and continues to desert the maintenance debtor.

(3) That part of a maintenance order which provides for the support of a dependent child shall stand discharged when the child ceases to be a dependent child of the family by reason of his attainment of the age of sixteen years or twenty-one years, as the case may be, and shall be discharged by the Court, on application to it under subsection (1) of this section, if it is satisfied that the child has for any reason ceased to be a dependent child of the family.

(4) Where the applicant spouse has committed adultery since the making of a maintenance order for the support of such spouse, then—

(a) if the other spouse has condoned or connived at, or by wilful neglect or misconduct conduced to, the adultery, the adultery shall not be a ground on which the Court may discharge or vary the maintenance order;

(b) if the other spouse has not condoned or connived at, or by wilful neglect or misconduct conduced to, the adultery, the Court may, notwithstanding the adultery, refuse to discharge or vary the maintenance order for the support of the applicant spouse in any case where the Court, having regard to all the circumstances (including the conduct of that other spouse), considers it proper to refuse to do so.

(5) Desertion or adultery by a spouse shall not be a ground for discharging or varying any part of a maintenance order that provides for the support of dependent children of the family.