Father's Rights Article 3: Maintenance for the minor child.

the minor child in question requires a certain amount of maintenance from the father

(the non-custodial parent in this instance) taking into account the facts in 1

above. However, in terms of 2 above the father may simply not be able to afford

the amount taking into account the financial requirements that he may need to

survive.

In this instance, the court has

held that the custodian parent is not entitled to claim maintenance for the

minor children from the father if the father simply does not have the means to

support the minor child. This may occur if, for example, the father may have

been retrenched and has no current income.

However, this example is based

on the situation at the time of an order for maintenance being granted and can

be reviewed and amended should the father’s circumstances change.

The parties, as explained in

previous articles, can reach an agreement on the maintenance to be provided for

the minor children. However, the court is not necessarily bound to this and may

make a different order.

By way of example, it has

occurred that the parties agree on a complete separation, and in exchange for

the father not having any access or visitation to the minor children, the father would not be required to pay maintenance. The court rejected this

stating that the right to be maintained by both parents is the minor’s right

and the father’s duty and cannot be waived.

While not strictly speaking

relevant to this article it should be noted that the father’s right to access

and visitation is not dependent on the payment of maintenance as these are

separate rights and issues. Therefore should the father be defaulting on

maintenance, for example, due to the change of circumstances or dispute on the

maintenance amount, this does not warrant the custodian parent from denying

access and visitation.

Maintenance orders usually

stipulate at what stage the order is to continue. For example, until the

minor reaches the age of majority or becomes self-supporting.

In our next article, we shall

discuss the options available to unmarried fathers when access and visitation

is refused.

May 18, 2024

Father&#39;s Rights Article 3: Maintenance for the minor child.