The Court of Appeal has backed a county court ruling that a charging order on a property can be made absolute after an instalment order has been made for the payment of the debt in the wake of a charging order nisi.
The court rejected a challenge by Seorise Robaigealach against the decision by Judge Masterman, Cardiff County Court in April 2001, to issue an order absolute.
Paul Spence, counsel for Robaigealach argued that where there had been no default in payment under the instalment order, the court had no power to make the charging order nisi absolute.
He added that there had to be a default in the payment of one or more instalments at the time the order absolute was issued and that the whole, or part of, an instalment that had already become due remained unpaid.
Dismissing the appeal, Hale LJ said that the county court judge was correct in ruling that the purpose of hearing at which an order nisi is made absolute is merely for the party charged to show cause why it should not have been made.
PLS News 14/11/01
