Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 · Updated to 15 Dec 2018 · Part VI · Divorce
Section 75
Feedback & supportWhere a decree of nullity is granted in respect of a voidable marriage, any child who would have been the legitimate child of the parties to the marriage if at the date of the decree it had been dissolved instead of being annulled shall be deemed to be their legitimate child.
child
“child” has the meaning of “child of the marriage” as defined in section 2 who is under the age of eighteen years. Power for court to make order for custody
Subject to the provisions of this section, the child of a void marriage shall be treated as the legitimate child of his parent if, at the time of the solemnization of the marriage, both or either of the parties reasonably believed that the marriage was valid.
Subsection (2) applies—
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only where the father of the child was domiciled in
Malaysia at the time of the marriage; and
in so far as it affects the devolution of any property only to children born after the appointed date.
This section does not affect any rights under the intestacy of a person who died before the appointed date, and does not affect the operation or construction of any disposition coming into operation before the appointed date.
appointed date
“appointed date” means the date of coming into operation of this Act;
Notwithstanding section 6 of the Legitimacy Act 1961 [Act 60]
all children who are deemed legitimate at birth by virtue of the provisions of this section shall be so treated in all respects and not as persons legitimated at the date of the marriage or of the
Legitimacy Act 1961 as provided therein.
Any person claiming otherwise than in a petition for a declaration of nullity of the relevant marriage that a child shall be treated as the legitimate child of his parents by virtue of subsection (3)
may apply for a decree to that effect and section 5 of the
Legitimacy Act 1961 shall apply mutatis mutandis to such petition but the court shall not make such a decree unless satisfied by the petitioner that both or either of the parties to the marriage reasonably believed that the marriage was valid as not being in any way contrary to section 71.
court
“court” means the High Court or a Judge thereof or, where a Sessions Court Judge has jurisdiction by virtue of subsection (2), the Sessions Court or a Sessions Court Judge of that Court;
In this section the following expressions have the meaning hereby assigned to them, that is to say—
“void marriage” means a marriage declared to be void under sections 6, 10, 11, subsection 22(4) or section 72;
“disposition” has the same meaning as in the Legitimacy Act 1961, and any reference in this section to property is a reference to any real or personal property, or any interest in such property, which is limited by any disposition (whether subject to a preceding limitation or charge or not) in such a way as to devolve as nearly as the law permits,
Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce)
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whether or not the property or some interest in the property may in some event become severed from it.