Divorce Solicitor
Cordell & Cordell
If a parent fails to pay child maintenance he can be sanctioned (punished) by the Court in many ways and those are often sanctions with far reaching consequences.
On the making by the Magistrates Court of a liability order for the sum not paid in child maintenance, the options available for enforcement include:
- Deductions from earnings order. This is where a persons employer will be ordered to deduct a certain amount automatically from the employees salary and those amounts will be paid directly to the Child Support Agency
- Deductions from paid benefits
- Disqualification from driving
- Imprisonment
- Sale of Property
- And even, in some circumstances, taking arrears from the estate of a person who has died.
This is a very serious matter. If men find themselves unable to pay their support, they must ask for a detailed breakdown of the calculation arrived at by the CSA or ultimately by the Court if enforcement proceedings have commenced.
An application can be made, just like with any other debt for instalment orders and it is entirely possible for there to be an application made to downward vary the amount being enforced, if certain circumstances have either been ignored or overlooked by the CSA which would have a material affect on the sums payable.
Oral agreements need to be filed with the Court and made an order, or they mean very little.
In summary, men need to pay what the order says, or get the order changed.
Karim Assaad is a London divorce solicitor at Cordell & Cordell. He has a wealth of knowledge and experience practicing family law, owning a proven record of providing indispensable advice to clients and delivering positive outcomes for them.
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