Child Support Act 1991

26 Disputes about parentage. E+W+S

(1) Where a person who is alleged to be a parent of the child with respect to whom an application for a maintenance assessment has been made (“the alleged parent”) denies that he is one of the child’s parents, the child support officer concerned shall not make a maintenance assessment on the assumption that the alleged parent is one of the child’s parents unless the case falls within one of those set out in subsection (2).

(2) The Cases are —

• Case A

  Where the alleged parent is a parent of the child in question by virtue of having adopted him.

• Case B

  Where the alleged parent is a parent of the child in question by virtue of an order under section 30 of the M1 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (parental orders in favour of gamete donors).

• Case C

  Where—

  (a)

  either—

  (i)

  a declaration that the alleged parent is a parent of the child in question (or a declaration which has that effect) is in force under section 56 of the M2 Family Law Act 1986 [F1 or Article 32 of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Order 1989] (declarations of parentage); or

  (ii)

  a declarator by a court in Scotland that the alleged parent is a parent of the child in question (or a declarator which has that effect) is in force; and

  (b)

  the child has not subsequently been adopted.

• Case D

  Where—

  (a)

  a declaration to the effect that the alleged parent is one of the parents of the child in question has been made under section 27; and

  (b)

  the child has not subsequently been adopted.

• Case E

  Where—

  (a)

  the child is habitually resident in Scotland;

  (b)

  the child support officer is satisfied that one or other of the presumptions set out in section 5(1) of the M3 Law Reform (Parent and Child) (Scotland) Act 1986 applies; and

  (c)

  the child has not subsequently been adopted.

• Case F

  Where—

  (a)

  the alleged parent has been found, or adjudged, to be the father of the child in question—

  (i)

  in proceedings before any court in England and Wales which are relevant proceedings for the purposes of section 12 of the M4 Civil Evidence Act 1968 [F2 or in proceedings before any court in Northern Ireland which are relevant proceedings for the purposes of section 8 of the Civil Evidence Act (Northern Ireland) 1971]; or

  (ii)

  in affiliation proceedings before any court in the United Kingdom,

  (whether or not he offered any defence to the allegation of paternity) and that finding or adjudication still subsists; and

  (b)

  the child has not subsequently been adopted.

(3) In this section—

• “adopted” means adopted within the meaning of Part IV of the M5 Adoption Act 1976 or, in relation to Scotland, Part IV of the M6 Adoption (Scotland) Act 1978; and

• “affiliation proceedings”, in relation to Scotland, means any action of affiliation and aliment.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 26(2) inserted (4.11.1996) by The Children (Northern Ireland Consequential Amendments) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/756), arts. 1(2), 13(a) (with art. 16); S.R. 1996/297, art. 3

F2 Words in s. 26(2) inserted (4.11.1996) by The Children (Northern Ireland Consequential Amendments) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/756), arts. 1(2), 13(b) (with art. 16); S.R. 1996/297, art. 3

Marginal Citations

M1 1990 c. 37.

M2 1986 c. 55.

M3 1986 c. 9.

M4 1968 c. 64.

M5 1976 c. 36.

M6 1978 c. 28.