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<p>The Child Maintenance Service has a wide range of strong enforcement powers, including
applying to the court to remove a non-paying parent’s driving licence, order the sale
of property, commit them to prison, or disqualify them from holding or obtaining a
passport.</p><p> </p><p>There is a longstanding legal position that a permanent arrangement
cannot be ordered by a court as part of any settlement action in respect of child
maintenance payments. The statutory child maintenance system was established because
court outcomes for families were frequently inconsistent. There is little merit in
enabling parents to pursue arrears through the court system which is inevitably adversarial,
costly and often a slow process which many clients may be unable to afford.</p>
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