Power to order adulterer to pay costs
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Summary
Court may order a co-respondent to pay the whole or part of the petitioner husband’s costs when the co-respondent’s adultery is proved. No cost order if the wife was living apart and leading the life of a prostitute at the time, or if the co-respondent had no reason to know she was married. For applications under section 17, the court can make an intervenor pay costs if their intervention had no or insufficient grounds.
Example
Rohan files a divorce petition naming Karan as co-respondent after discovering Karan had an affair with Rohan’s wife. When the court finds the adultery proved and Karan knew she was married, it may order Karan to pay all or part of Rohan’s legal costs.
Bare Act
Enacted textWhenever in any Petition presented by a husband the alleged adulterer has been made a co-respondent, and the adultery his began established, the Court may order the co-respondent to pay the whole or any part of the costs of the proceedings:
Provided that the co-respondent shall not be ordered to pay the Petitioner’s costs-
(1) if the respondent was, at the time of the adultery, living apart from her husband and leading the life of a prostitute, or
(2) if the co-respondent had not, at the time of the adultery, reason to believe the respondent to be a married woman. Power to order litiguous intervenor to pay costs.
Power to order litigious intervenor to pay costs.- Whenever any application is made under section 17, the Court, if it thinks that the applicant had no grounds or no sufficient grounds for intervening, may order him to pay the whole or any part of the costs occasioned by the application.
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