Failure to pay maintenance in Malta is not merely a civil matter — it may also amount to a criminal liability under Article 338(z) of the Criminal Code. The law imposes a strict obligation on individuals ordered by a court, or bound by a legally valid separation agreement, to pay maintenance within the stipulated timeframes....
Medical negligence claims in Malta are not regulated by a specific statutory framework. Instead, Maltese courts rely on the general provisions on damages contained in the Civil Code, Chapter 16 of the Laws of Malta. Medical Negligence Claims in Malta In a recent judgement regarding alleged damage caused because of breast augmentation surgery an extensive...
A landmark judgment delivered by the First Hall, Civil Court (Constitutional Jurisdiction) enshrined that the right to cross-examine witnesses at any stage of criminal proceedings is a fundamental human right. This ruling reaffirms that the right to a fair hearing includes the right to cross-examine witnesses. The defence was denied the opportunity to cross-examine the...
A presumption of criminal responsibility has been established in our laws by virtue of Article 3 (1A) of Chapter 104 of the Laws of Malta titled the Motor Vehicle Insurance (Third-Party Risks) Ordinance. Whilst Article 3(1) of Chapter 104 creates the offence of driving a vehicle without a valid insurance cover, Section 3(1A) creates the...
Extradition is the act of officially sending an accused or a convicted person by a State, on whose territory the alleged criminal is situated, to another State for such individual to be tried or serve the sentence. In other words, extradition is the formal surrender by one State to another of an offender who is...
Criminal proceedings are to be tried within a reasonable time. This fundamental human right is catered for in Article 39 of the Constitution of Malta which reads as follows: Whenever any person is charged with a criminal offence he shall, unless the charge is withdrawn, be afforded a fair hearing within a reasonable time by...
A new approach to drug abuse introduced on the Maltese Islands. This approach moves to help treat drug abusers rather than to just simply punish them. This is by virtue of the amendments to Chapter 581 of the laws of Malta, namely the Drug Dependence (Treatment not Imprisonment). It is clear that the salient aim...
On the 19th October 2017 at around 19:40, Stephanie Rapa while crossing Triq ix-Xatt, Gzira from the side where there was the sea to the side of the restaurants, was ran over by a Nissan GTR car driven by Anthony Chircop. Stephanie Rapa was certified dead at 20:15 that same evening. A case before the...
On the 24th October 2022, the Minister of Finance introduced the country’s Budget for the year 2023. It is highlighted that the Budget deficit of the country is of €1.142 billion (that is 7.8% GDP) in 2021 and the deficit forecast for 2022 is of €948 billion (that is 5.8% of GDP). Salient features of...
Malta Enterprise has launched the Start-up Residence Programme which grants a residence permit to the founder/s launching a start-up venture in Malta. This Programme is intended for non-EU nationals and is specifically designed to facilitate the setting up of innovative start-ups and scale-ups in Malta whilst supporting the immigration process of their founders/co-founders, core employees...
