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12 November 2009 / Katherine Walker
Issue: 7393 / Categories: Features , Family
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On guard!

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Paying close attention to child support legislation can pay dividends. Katherine Walker explains why

The failings of the Child Support Agency (CSA) are well documented and the only advice most of us give to our clients in relation to the CSA is, where possible, to avoid it at all costs.

However, given that the statutory regime is the starting point, both for practitioners when negotiating consent orders and for the court in cases where it retains jurisdiction, it is important to be familiar with the detail of the legislation and the changes ahead.

The much heralded creation of the Child Maintenance Enforcement Commission (CMEC) has created the impression that change is occurring more quickly than is actually the case.

The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008 (CMOPA 2008) continues to build on the existing, already labyrinthine, statutory framework. The confusion over the precise division of responsibility between the old CSA and CMEC has certainly not helped matters.

In fact, although CMEC has been up and running since July 2008 and has assumed responsibility

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