Feuding neighbours can now settle spats at new tribunals
SINGAPORE — From tomorrow (Oct 1), a new avenue for feuding neighbours to settle their differences will begin operating at the State Courts.
The Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals (CDRTs) will hear only cases involving spats between neighbours — legally defined as individuals living either in the same building or within 100m of each other — after other efforts, such as community mediation, have been exhausted.
To start proceedings, a person must file an application for a tribunal order and provide evidence of the alleged unreasonable behaviour — such as making too much noise or littering — at Community Justice and Tribunals Division at the State Courts. Such evidence could be in the form of photographs, medical reports and printed emails, for instance.
The complainant must then serve a copy of the claim and evidence to his neighbour, who will have 14 days thereafter to object or contest the claim. Plaintiffs before the CDRTs bear about S$200 in administrative costs for each claim, less than half of costs for most cases handled by a District Court.
A pre-trial conference will then be called, where the judge can also mandate counselling or mediation, even without the parties’ consent, such as by referring a case to the Community Mediation Centre (CMC). Failure to comply would be considered contempt of court, a person faces up to six months’ jail and/or a fine of up to S$2,000 if found to be in contempt. If parties are unable to resolve disputes after mediation, they will be directed to a trial.
The tribunals are part of the Community Disputes Resolution Act passed in March to provide further recourse in neighbourly spats. Voluntary mediation is one solution — the CMC mediated 571 cases last year and has a 75 per cent success rate overall — but no-show rates are high, at about 60 per cent each year.
Hearings before the CDRTs are led by the State Court’s judges, who may call for and question additional witnesses, and ask parties to produce further evidence. Parties cannot be represented by lawyers, except in special cases where both parties are in agreement. The court can order the neighbour to apologise, pay damages of up to S$20,000 or cease a certain action. Should the neighbour ignore the order, a special direction can be issued to ensure compliance. Failure to comply with a special direction could amount to a criminal offence, and liable to a fine of up to S$5,000 and/or three months’ jail. The plaintiff can also apply to a court for an exclusion order to evict the neighbour from his or her home.
Lawyer Amolat Singh said the tribunals are a timely initiative. “Unlike in a private summons, the specialised tribunals allow for more calibrated and targeted responses. For instance, the father of an unreasonable young neighbour can be told to keep closer watch of his son, said Mr Singh, who is an Associate Mediator of the State Courts. The tribunals may also have a “deterrent effect”, he added.
Lawyer Sunil Sudheesan felt the CDRT could help channel disputes “away from full court processes”. “It aims to build bridges against conflicting parties, which require a lot of empathy and understanding on all parts. The Bar is generally supportive of this,“ he said.
