Family Justice Review: Deadline 23rd June: CSA

http://www.csa.gov.uk/
In March 2004, I took matters to Family Court in the knowledge that my former partner and mother to my children would not seek conciliation.

In October 2004 following several visits to the Court, we were granted a Joint Residency Order, Shared Care Agreement and a 50/50 Contact Order, very rare in the U.K. but something I was satisfied would serve my Children's best interest until they were mature enough to decide for themselves as to which parent they would choose to stay with, in any event I envisaged this to be by the time each of my sons reached Secondary School.

This Order came with its' financial burden to me of £35,000, whilst the mother enjoyed similar amount from Legal Aid. I also sent a letter on the 21st October 2004 to my former partner's solicitor suggesting we came to an arrangement pertaining to financial matters. This letter has gone unanswered to date and the subsequent actions of my former partner will explain why.

As early as Christmas 2004 my former partner was seeking to disrupt the Court Order and whilst she failed on this early attempt it was a course of action she pursued right through to August 2008, by which time I had established a second family home close to the Schools as well as a regular routine with my children and with both homes in close proximity to the Schools this meant both my children should have had the convenience of visiting either parent at will. Sadly the mother chose to withhold my children from the Court appointed contact since 19th September 2007 to the present date as by showing she was the sole parent, this would give her greater kudos when making excessive demands on the CSA when a Shared Care Agreement meant costs should have been just that!

In 2008 due to the expenditure incurred in Courts trying to maintain a second family home, reduced working times (even though I worked flexible hours through Agencies) to accommodate the children's contact, I was rendered Bankrupt and part of this process meant on one occasion, two envelopes arrived at my door on a Saturday morning, one containing notification that my former partner and her new partner (who has regular contact with my sons, yet has not spent 30 seconds in a family court), were able to obtain possession of my former family home at a peppercorn rate meaning by now there is no mortgage to be paid. In the same post the second envelope contained notification of the second family home I shared with my Wife and her Daughter as well as my own two Sons would be repossessed as I had fallen behind with the mortgage payments and although this was July 2008, I did suggest if they could wait until September, I would have early access to a pension which would resolve this matter, although this has subsequently reduced any further benefit of this pension to a minimum.

Today I find I am under undue pressure to pay exorbitant amount to the Child Support Agency in spite of all the efforts described above. They seem to pluck a figure out of the sky without considering your means, demand that you pay it. There is no accountability for the mother to show her financial status, simply by showing she is sole carer, she seems empowered to make these excessive demands and the CSA for their part will not take into consideration any of the FACTS highlighted above. They are content to reduce my salary in half putting my house at further risk of repossession whilst also demanding the reminance of my meagre pension and all they will tell you in answer to their blinkered action is 'That Is The Law!'

Well I'm here to tell you, there was a Law at one time that allowed Slavery, condoned Capital Punishment and alienated Homosexuals and I can only find hope that the current Family Justice Review will bring this draconian Law into the 21st Century and offer some right of redress by individual parents, more often the Father who it is demanded should pay for two Households from a single modest salary, to this end I would site this Law as Sexual Discrimination as it is less likely they would pursue a mother. I would also site it as Racial Discrimination as it is unlikely they would pursue Travellers when even the Police will not go on site and furthermore, What about the Human Rights of my Wife and I?... why should we be put in this impossible situation whilst my former partner languishes in the former family home even with a Council enquiry as to why she takes the children out of School during term time for too many holidays.

Child Support system as it stands serves self interested money grabbing mothers whilst mothers with general needs go short and they fail to pursue feckless runaway Dads, when the soft target is those like myself who have gone through the system with the best interest of the children in mind and become harassed and intimidated as they know and always have known my home address and telephone number, so I for one will say no more to this Injustice even if it renders me liable for Court action, enough is enough!

(Click on this blog title to see more injustice by the CSA, brought to you by RFFJ)

I would ask everyone to help me raise the profile of the CSA injustice throughout local and national media before the June 23rd deadline: Happy Father's Day!