Married Women Act 1957

This Act shall apply to the States of Peninsular Malaysia only.

The provisions of this Act as to the liabilities of married women shall extend to all liabilities by reason of any breach of trust or devastavit committed by any married woman being a trustee or executrix or administratrix either before or after her marriage, and her husband shall not be subject to such liabilities unless he has acted or intermeddled in the trust or administration.

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be capable of acquiring, holding and disposing of, any property;

be capable of rendering herself, and being rendered, liable in respect of any tort, contract, debt or obligation;

be capable of suing and being sued in her own name either in tort or in contract or otherwise and shall be entitled to all remedies and redress for all purposes; and

be subject to the law relating to bankruptcy and to the enforcement of judgments and orders, in all respects as if she were a feme sole.

immediately before the date of the coming into force of this Act was the property (including the separate property)

of a married woman or held for her separate use in equity;

or

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belongs at the time of her marriage to a woman married after the date of the coming into force of this Act; or

after the date of the coming into force of this Act is acquired by or devolves upon a married woman, shall belong to her in all respects as if she were a feme sole and may be disposed of accordingly:

Provided that nothing in this subsection shall—

be construed as affecting adversely the right of any married woman to any property which she had immediately before the date of the coming into force of this Act; or

interfere with or render inoperative any valid restriction upon anticipation or alienation attached to the enjoyment of any property by virtue of any provision contained in any written law in force immediately before the date of the coming into force of this Act, or in any instrument executed before such date.

Any instrument executed on or after the date of the coming into force of this Act, shall, in so far as it purports to attach to the enjoyment of any property by a woman any restriction upon anticipation or alienation which could not have been attached to the enjoyment of that property by a man, be void.

For the purposes of this section relating to restrictions upon anticipation or alienation—

A husband or a wife shall be entitled to sue each other in tort for the protection or security of his or her property, as the case may be.

In any criminal charge or in any other proceeding relating to the property of a married woman it shall be sufficient to allege such property to be her property.

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No criminal proceeding shall be taken against a husband or wife while they are living together as to or concerning any property claimed by her or him respectively nor while they are living apart as to or concerning any act done by the husband or wife while they were living together concerning property claimed by the wife or husband respectively unless such property has been wrongly taken by the husband or wife when leaving or deserting or about to leave or desert the wife or husband respectively.

In any action or proceedings by a married woman or by a next friend on her behalf, the Court before which such action or proceedings is pending shall have jurisdiction by judgment or order to order payment of the costs of the opposite party out of property which is subject to a restraint on anticipation, and may enforce such payment by the appointment of a receiver and the sale of the property or otherwise as is just.

Such woman may be sued for any such debt and for any liability in damages or otherwise under any such contract or in respect of any such wrong.

Questions between husband and wife as to property to be decided in a summary way

Any order made under this section shall be subject to appeal in the same way as an order made by the same Judge or Sessions

Court Judge as the case may be in an action pending in the High

Court or Sessions Court respectively.

The Judge or Sessions Court Judge if either party so requires, may hear any such application in his Chambers.

No restriction against anticipation contained in any settlement or agreement for a settlement of a woman’s own property to which proviso (a) to subsection 5(1) applies shall, if made or entered into by such woman have any validity against debts contracted by her before marriage, and no settlement or agreement for a settlement shall have any greater force or validity against creditors of a woman than a like settlement or agreement for a settlement made or entered into by a man would have against his creditors.

Subsection (1) has effect in relation to Muslim married women and their property rights and obligations subject to Islamic law and the customs of the Malays governing the relations be-tween husband and wife so far as the same may be applicable.