(1) The Court must, in
the exercise of its non-federal jurisdiction under this Act, have regard, as
is applicable to each case, to —
(a) the
need to preserve and protect the institution of marriage as the union of a man
and a woman to the exclusion of all others voluntarily entered into for life;
and
(b) the
need to give the widest possible protection and assistance to the family as
the natural and fundamental group unit of society, particularly while it is
responsible for the care and education of dependent children; and
(c) the
need to protect the rights of children and to promote their welfare; and
(d) the
need to ensure protection from family violence; and
(e) the
means available for assisting parties to a marriage to consider reconciliation
or the improvement of their relationship to each other and to the children of
the marriage.
(2) Subject to this
Act, in exercising its non-federal jurisdictions with respect to a child the
Court may —
(a) make
such order as it thinks proper; or
(b) make
an order until further order; or
(c)
discharge or vary an order or suspend any part of an order and may revive the
operation of any part of an order so suspended.
[Section 37 amended: No. 13 of 2013 s. 7.]