Child's standard of living: enforcing child support.

AuthorGregory B. Schmidt

The refusal of the Supreme Court of Canada to regard Ms Thibaudeau as discriminated against left the taxation of support payments exactly where it was, and at writing, where it remains. Child support payments are taxable in the hands of the recipient, the custodial parent, and deductible by the payor, the non-custodial parent.

Whether it is the tax treatment of child support payments or steps being taken to ensure that support payments are made, the central issue for all of us should be to ensure that children are provided for through support payments that are sufficient in amount and efficient in their enforcement.

Stories abound about how support payments are or are not enforced. Our purpose here is to suggest some alternative measures that can be used to enhance the payment of court-ordered child support.

Enforcement -- The Present

In Alberta, child support orders within a divorce action are administered through the Maintenance Enforcement Program, Department of Justice. If a recipient does not want her order automatically enforced, she must advise the Director of Maintenance Enforcement, in writing, that she wants to withdraw from the enforcement program. Similar programs exist in other provinces.

Currently, enforcement procedures include attachments similar to a garnishee upon a payor's income or various bank accounts. Renewal of driver's licences may be delayed until a payor has brought support payments up to date. Payment schedules that address arrears or promote orderly and continuous payment can often be negotiated through Maintenance Enforcement to the satisfaction of both the payor and the recipient. Flagrant cases of failure to pay support can result in prison terms for up to 90 days.

Alberta's courts have held that child support payments are the entitlement of children, not the parents. This means that support levels and the obligation to pay will be determined to provide for the needs of the children as opposed to the convenience of the spouses or ex-spouses, even where they both agree. The intention of court-ordered support is to ensure a child is able to maintain a standard of living without unusual reduction resulting from separation or divorce. Both parents are obligated to support the children according to their means to ensure an appropriate standard of living.

Current methods of enforcement have resulted in greater compliance with support obligations. They have not, however, solved all of the problems. Many support...

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