Child maintenance and financial provision—spouses and civil partners

Published by a LexisNexis Family expert
Practice notes

Child maintenance and financial provision—spouses and civil partners

Published by a LexisNexis Family expert

Practice notes
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This Practice Note considers the court’s powers to make financial provision for children in cases where the paying and receiving party are or have been married or in a civil partnership. It details the court’s power to make orders for periodical payments and capital orders, global or ‘Segal’ orders, and orders under the Domestic Proceedings and Magistrates’ Courts Act 1978 (DPMCA 1978) and its Civil Partnership Act 2004 (CPA 2004) equivalent (failure to maintain, application before lay justices). It also considers financial provision under Sch 1 to the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) involving parents who are or have been married or in a civil partnership, including cases where a financial order has already been made under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 (MCA 1973) or CPA 2004.

The court does not have the power to make, vary or revive Child maintenance orders where the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has (or would have, were an application made) jurisdiction to make a Maintenance calculation, subject to some important exceptions. These include orders embodying an agreement reached

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Key definition:
Child maintenance definition
What does Child maintenance mean?

A payment made (usually by a parent) to the other parent for outgoings relating to a child or children. Child maintenance may be paid on a voluntary and agreed basis, via the child maintenance service (CMS) or in limited circumstances ordered by the court (also known as 'child periodical payments' or 'child support').

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