Bastardy Laws Amendment Act 1872
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1872 c. 65 |
Bastardy Laws Amendment Act, 1872
(35 & 36 Vict.) CHAPTER 65.
An Act to amend the Bastardy Laws.
[10th August 1872]
Whereas an Act was passed in the seventh and eighth years of the reign of Her Majesty, chapter one hundred and one, intituled ‘An Actfor the further amendment of the laws relating to the poor in England:’
And whereas it is expedient to amend the said recited Act with respect to proceedings in bastardy:
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
1 Short title.
1. This Act may be cited as ‘TheBastardy Laws Amendment Act, 1872.’
2 Repeal of enactments as in schedule.
2. The enactments specified in the first schedule to this Act are hereby repealed, except as to anything heretofore duly done thereunder, and except so far as may be necessary for the purpose of supporting and continuing any proceeding taken before the passing of this Act.
3 Putative father to be summoned to petty sessions on application of mother of bastard child.
3. Any single woman who may be with child or who may be delivered of a bastard child after the passing of this Act may either before the birth or at any time within twelve months from the birth of such child, or at any time thereafter, upon proof that the man alleged to be the father of such child has within the twelve months next after the birth of such child paid money for its maintenance, or at any time within the twelve months next after the return to England of the man alleged to be the father of such child, upon proof that he ceased to reside in England within the twelve months next after the birth of such child, make application to any one justice of the peace acting for the petty sessional division of the county, or for the city, borough, or place in which she may reside, for a summons to be served on the man alleged by her to be the father of the child, and if such application be made before the birth of the child the woman shall make a deposition upon oath stating who is the father of such child, and such justice of the peace shall thereupon issue his summons to the person alleged to be the father of such child to appear at a petty session to be holden after the expiration of six days at least for the petty sessional division, city, borough, or other place in which such justice usually acts.
4 Justices in petty session may make an order on the putative father for maintenance, education, &c. of bastard child, and enforce the same by distress and commitment.
4. After the birth of such bastard child, on the appearance of the person so summoned, or on proof that the summons was duly served on such person, or left at his last place of abode, six days at least before the petty session, the justices in such petty session shall hear the evidence of such woman and such other evidence as she may produce, and shall also hear any evidence tendered by or on behalf of the person alleged to be the father, and if the evidence of the mother be corroborated in some material particular by other evidence to the satisfaction of the said justices, they may adjudge the man to be the putative father of such bastard child; and they may also, if they see fit, having regard to all the circumstance of the case, proceed to make an order on the putative father for the payment to the mother of the bastard child, or to any person who may be appointed to have the custody of such child, under the provisions of the said recited Act, of a sum of money weekly, not exceeding five shillings a week, for the maintenance and education of the child, and of the expenses incidental to the birth of such child, and of the funeral expenses of the child, provided it has died before the making of such order, and of such costs as may have been incurred in the obtaining of such order; and if the application be made before the birth of the child, or...
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