In a family case, from what event does an adjudication take effect, and when does it take effect only once it is final?
General information · Not legal advice
Material to check
In a practice file of this kind we read the proof of service or notification record showing when the person to receive the adjudication was notified, the adjudication itself to see whether it is one open to immediate appeal, and any notice of immediate appeal with its receipt date to see whether it has become final.
These are types of material to look for, not evidence already verified by PRO SE.
Where readings differ
One reading follows the main rule: the effect of an adjudication arises when the person who is to receive it is notified of it, so the date on which that notification reached that person is the event the provision turns on, and it is that person's receipt, not the court's dispatch, that matters.
Another reading follows the exception: for an adjudication against which immediate appeal may be made under the provision on immediate appeal, notification alone does not give it effect, and its effect waits until it is final, so the file must show whether an appeal was lodged and when the adjudication became final.
Your judgment
If the file shows notification but not whether an immediate appeal was possible or lodged, what would show whether the adjudication has yet taken effect?
PRO SE does not make this decision or keep a case record on this public site.When to reconsider
We look at this again if the provision is amended to change the event from which effect runs, or if a court decision decides when an adjudication open to immediate appeal is to be treated as final.