Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980

Payments to children E+W

62 Provisions as to payments required to be made to a child, etc. E+W

(1) Where—

(a) periodical payments are required to be made, or a lump sum is required to be paid, to a child under an order made by a magistrates’ court, or

(b) periodical payments are required to be made to a child under an order which is registered in a magistrates’ court,

any sum required under the order to be paid to the child may be paid to the person with whom the child has his home, and that person—

(i) may proceed in his own name for the variation, revival or revocation of the order, and

(ii) may either proceed in his own name for the recovery of any sum required to be paid under the order or request the clerk to the magistrates’ court, under subsection (3) of section 59 above, to proceed for the recovery of that sum.

(2) Where a child has a right under any enactment to apply for the revival of an order made by a magistrates’ court which provided for the making of periodical payments to or for the benefit of the child, the person with whom the child has his home may proceed in his own name for the revival of that order.

(3) Where any person by whom periodical payments are required to be paid to a child under an order made by or registered in a magistrates’ court makes a complaint for the variation or revocation of that order, the person with whom the child has his home may answer the complaint in his own name.

(4) Nothing in subsections (1) and (2) above shall affect any right of a child to proceed in his own name for the variation, revival or revocation of an order or for the recovery of any sum payable thereunder.

[F1 (5) In this section references to the person with whom a child has his home—

(a) in the case of any child who is being looked after by a local authority (within the meaning of section 22 of the Children Act 1989), are references to that local authority; and

(b) in any other case, are references to the person who, disregarding any absence of the child at a hospital or boarding school and any other temporary absence, has care of the child.]

(6) In this section any reference to an order registered in a magistrates’ court is a reference to an order registered in a magistrates’ court under Part II of the M1 Maintenance Orders Act 1950 or Part I of the M2 Maintenance Orders Act 1958.

(7) In this section “child” means a person who has not attained the age of 18.

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 62(5) substituted (14.10.1991) by Children Act 1989 (c. 41, SIF 20), s. 108(5), Sch. 13 para. 44(2) (with Sch. 14 para. 1(1)); S.I. 1991/828, art. 3(2)

Marginal Citations

M1 1950 c. 37.

M2 1958 c. 39.