3.—(1) In this Act, save where the context otherwise requires—

F1[ ‘Act of 2010’ means the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010;]

F2[‘allowance’ means deserted wife’s allowance under section 195, lone parent’s allowance under section 198B or supplementary welfare allowance under section 200 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981;]

“antecedent order” means—

(a) a maintenance order,

(b) a variation order,

(c) an interim order,

(d) an order under section 8 of this Act (in so far as it is deemed under that section to be a maintenance order),

F1[(da) an order under section 8A of this Act (in so far as it is deemed under that section to be a maintenance order),]

(e) an order deemed under section 30 of this Act to be a maintenance order,

(f) an order providing for a periodical payment under the Illegitimate Children (Affiliation Orders) Act, 1930,

(g) an order for maintenance under section 11 (2) (b) of the Guardianship of Infants Act, 1964,

(h) an enforceable maintenance order under the Maintenance Orders Act, 1974,

F3[(i) an order for alimony pending suit;]

F4[(j) an order for maintenance pending suit under the Judicial Separation and Family Law Reform Act, 1989, or a periodical payments order under that Act,

(k) a maintenance pending suit order under the Family Law Act, 1995, or a periodical payments order under that Act;]

F5[(l) a maintenance pending suit order under the Family Law (Divorce) Act, 1996, or a periodical payments order under that Act;]

“attachment of earnings order” means an order under section 10 of this Act;

F6[‘benefit’ means deserted wife’s benefit under section 100 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981;]

F1[‘civil partner’ shall be construed in accordance with section 3 of the Act of 2010;]

F1[‘cohabitant’ shall be construed in accordance with section 172(1) of the Act of 2010 and includes a former cohabitant;]

F6[‘competent authority’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 314 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981;]

“Court” shall be construed in accordance with section 23 of this Act;

F7[‘dependent child’ means any child (including a child whose parents are not married to each other) who is under the age of F8[18] years, or, if he has attained that age—

(a) is or will be or, if an order were made under this Act providing for periodical payments for his support, would be receiving full-time education or instruction at any university, college, school or other educational establishment and is under the age of F8[23] years, or

(b) is suffering from mental or physical disability to such extent that it is not reasonably possible for him to maintain himself fully;]

F9[‘dependent child of the family’, in relation to a spouse or spouses, means any dependent child—

(a) of both spouses, or adopted by both spouses under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1976, or in relation to whom both spouses are in loco parentis, or

(b) of either spouse, or adopted by either spouse under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1976, or in relation to whom either spouse is in loco parentis, where the other spouse, being aware that he is not the parent of the child, has treated the child as a member of the family;]

“desertion” includes conduct on the part of one spouse that results in the other spouse, with just cause, leaving and living separately and apart from him, and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;

“earnings” means any sums payable to a person—

(a) by way of wages or salary (including any fees, bonus, commission, overtime pay or other emoluments payable in addition to wages or salary or payable under a contract of service);

(b) by way of pension or other like benefit in respect of employment (including an annuity in respect of past services, whether or not rendered to the person paying the annuity, and including periodical payments by way of compensation for the loss, abolition or relinquishment, or diminution in the emoluments, of any office or employment);

“interim order” means an order under section 7 of this Act;

F10[‘lump sum order’ means an order under section 21A of this Act;]

“maintenance creditor”, in relation to an order under this Act (other than an order under section 22 of this Act), or to proceedings arising out of such an order, means a person on whose application there has been made such an order;

“maintenance debtor”, in relation to an attachment of earnings order, or to proceedings in which a Court has power to make such an order, or to proceedings arising out of such an order, means the F11[person] by whom payments are required by the relevant antecedent order to be made and, in relation to any other order under this Act (other than an order under section 22 of this Act) or to proceedings in which a Court has power to make such an order, or to proceedings arising out of such an order, means a F11[person] who is or, if it were made, would be required by such an order to make periodical payments for the support of persons named in the order;

F12[‘maintenance order’ means, where the context requires, F11[an order under section 5, 5A, 5B or 5C] of this Act;]

“normal deduction rate” and “protected earnings rate” have the meanings respectively assigned to them by section 10 of this Act;

F13[‘parent’, in relation to a dependent child, includes a person who has adopted the child under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1976, but does not include a person who is a parent of the child adopted under those Acts where the person is not an adopter of the child;]

“variation order” means an order under section 6 of this Act varying a maintenance order.

(2) Subject to section 16 of this Act, the relationship of employer and employee shall be regarded as subsisting between two persons if one of them as a principal and not as a servant or agent pays earnings to the other.

(3) References in this Act to a District Court clerk include references to his successor in the office of District Court clerk and to any person acting on his behalf.

(4) References in this Act to any enactment shall be construed as references to that enactment as amended by any subsequent enactment, including this Act.