The Married Womens Property Act, 1874

THE MARRIED WOMEN’S PROPERTY ACT, 1874

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Section 3 — [Repealed.]. II

Section 4 — Married women’s earnings to be their separate property. III

Section 6 — Insurance by husband for benefit of wife. IV

Section 8 — Wife’s liability for postnuptial debts. V

Section 9 — Husband not liable for wife’s antenuptial debts. VI

THE MARRIED WOMEN’S PROPERTY ACT, 1874 _______ ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS _______ PREAMBLE I. —PRELIMINARY SECTIONS 1. II.—MARRIED WOMEN’S WAGES AND EARNINGS 4. Married women’s earnings to be their separate property. Married woman may effect policy of insurance. IV.—LEGAL PROCEEDINGS BY AND AGAINST MARRIED WOMEN 7. Married woman may take legal proceedings.

THE MARRIED WOMEN’S PROPERTY ACT, 1874

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Section 1 — Short title

Section 2 — Extent and application

THE MARRIED WOMEN’S PROPERTY ACT, 1874 1 ACT NO. Preamble.—WHEREAS it is expedient to make such provision as hereinafter appears for the enjoyment of wages and earnings by women married before the first day of January, 1866, and for insurances on lives by persons married before or after that day: 2 AND WHEREAS by the Indian Succession Act, 1865 (10 of 1865), section 4, it is enacted that no person shall by marriage acquire any interest in the property of the person whom he or she marries, nor become incapable of doing any act in respect of his or her own property, which he or she could have done, if unmarried: AND WHEREAS by force of the said Act all women to whose marriages it applies are absolute owners of all property vested in, or acquired by, them, and their husbands do not by their marriage acquire any interest in such property, but the said Act does not protect such husbands from liabilities on account of the debts of their wives contracted before marriage, and does not expressly provide for the enforcement of claims by or against such wives: It is hereby enacted as follows:— I.—PRELIMINARY 1. Short title.—This Act may be called the Married Women’s Property Act, 1874. Married women’s earnings to be their separate property.—The wages and earnings of any married woman acquired or gained by her after the passing of this Act, in any employment, occupation or trade carried on by her and not by her husband, 1. Cf. the Married Women’s Property Act 1870 (33 and 34 Vict., c. 1, now rep. by Married Women’s Property Act, 1882 (45 and 46 Vict., c.

and also any money or other property so acquired by her through the exercise of any literary,

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Section 5 — Married women may effect policy of insurance

and also any money or other property so acquired by her through the exercise of any literary, artistic or scientific skill, and all savings from and investments of such wages, earnings and property, shall be deemed to be her separate property, and her receipts alone shall be good discharges for such wages, earnings and property. III. —INSURANCES BY WIVES AND HUSBANDS 1 5. Married women may effect policy of insurance.—Any married woman may effect a policy of insurance on her own behalf and independently of her husband; and the same and all benefit thereof, if expressed on the face of it to be so effected, shall ensure as her separate property, and the contract evidenced by such policy shall be as valid as if made with an unmarried woman. 2, the provisions of sub-section (1) shall apply in the case of any policy of insurance such as is referred to therein which effected— (a) by any Hindu, Muhammadan, Sikh or Jain— (i) in Madras, after the thirty-first day of December, 1913, or (ii) in any other territory to which this Act extended immediately before the commencement of the Married Women’s Property (Extension) Act, 1959 (61 of 1959), after the first day of April, 1923, or (iii) in any territory to which this Act extends on and from the commencement of the Married Women’s Property (Extension) Act, 1959 (61 of 1959); (b) by a Buddhist in any territory to which this Act extends, on or after the commencement of the Married Women’s Property (Extension) Act, 1959 (61 of 1959): 1. Cf. the Married Women’s Property Act, 1870 (33 and 34 Vict., c. Cf. the Married Women’s Property Act, 1870 (33 and 34 Vict., c.

Provided that nothing herein contained shall affect any right or liability which has accrued or been

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Section 7 — Married women may take legal proceedings

Section 10 — Extent of husband’s liability for wife’s breach of trust or devastation

Provided that nothing herein contained shall affect any right or liability which has accrued or been incurred under any decree of a competent court passed — (i) before the first day of April, 1923, in any case to which sub-clause (i) or sub-clause (ii) of clause (a) applies; or (ii) before the commencement of the Married Women’s Property (Extension) Act, 1959 (61 of 1959), in any case to which sub-clause (iii) of clause (a) or clause (b) applies.] IV.—LEGAL PROCEEDINGS BY AND AGAINST MARRIED WOMEN 1 7. Married women may take legal proceedings.—A married woman may maintain a suit in her own name for the recovery of property of any description which, by force of the said Indian 2 Succession Act, 1865 (10 of 1865) or of this Act, is her separate property; and she shall have, in her own name, the same remedies, both civil and criminal, against all persons, for the protection and security of such property, as if she were unmarried, and she shall be liable to such suits, processes and orders in respect of such property as she would be liable to if she were unmarried. Wife’s liability for postnuptial debts.—If a married woman (whether married before or after the first day of January, 1866) possesses separate property, and if any person enters into a contract with her with reference to such property, or on the faith that her obligation arising out of such contract will be satisfied out of her separate property, such person shall be entitled to sue her, and, to the extent of her separate property, to recover against her whatever he might have recovered in such suit had she been unmarried at the date of the contract and continued unmarried at the execution of the decree: 3 [Provided that nothing herein contained shall— (a) entitle such person to recover anything by attachment and sale or otherwise out of any property which has been transferred to a woman or for her benefit on condition that she shall have no power during her marriage to transfer or charge the same or her beneficial interest therein, or (b) affect the liability of a husband for debts contracted by his wife’s agency expressed or implied.] V.—HUSBAND'S LIABILITY FOR WIFE'S DEBTS 4 9. Husband not liable for wife’s antenuptial debts.—A husband married after the thirty-first day of December, 1865 shall not by reason only of such marriage be liable to the debts of his wife contracted before marriage, but the wife shall be liable to be sued for, and shall, to the extent of her separate property, be liable to satisfy such debts as if he had continued unmarried: 5 Proviso.—Provided that nothing contained in this section shall *** invalidate any contract into which a husband may, before the passing of this Act, have entered in consideration of his wife’s ante-nuptial debts. 6 [VI.—HUSBAND’S LIABILITY FOR WIFE’S BREACH OF TRUST OR DEVASTATION 10. Extent of husband’s liability for wife’s breach of trust or devastation.—Where a woman is a trustee, executrix or administratrix, either before or after marriage, her husband shall not, unless he acts or intermeddles in the trust or administration, be liable for any breach of trust committed by her, or for any misapplication, loss or damage to the estate of the deceased caused or made by her, or for any loss to such estate arising from her neglect to get in any part of the property of deceased.] _______ 1.