Saskatchewan Justice Minister and Attorney General Bronwyn Eyre. (980 CJME file photo)

By Nigel Maxwell

Family court

Province rolls out new program to assist with child support disputes

Nov 16, 2023 | 3:05 PM

Divorce and separation can be costly and difficult roads to navigate, but the provincial government aims to make it easier with the new expanded child support service program.

It’s designed to assist parents, who are experiencing separation and divorce, to calculate initial child support without having to go to family court.

This will expand the Child Support Service (formerly the Child Support Recalculation Service), launched in 2018.

“The family court process can be costly, complex, time-consuming, and cause great stress to parents and children,” Justice Minister and Attorney General Bronwyn Eyre said in a statement. “This service aims to reduce some of that financial burden and anxiety and allow parents to focus on the wellbeing of their children.”

Since 2018, the Recalculation Service has issued more than 507 recalculations and helped 776 families update the support amount to which they were entitled, sparing them the expense of legal fees and going to court.

Early Game Struggles

North Stars almost complete comeback in Kindersley

3h ago

Honouring a neighbour

'He's smiling down at us': Wes Petterson Memorial Park opens in Weldon with special ceremony

7h ago

Investigation

RCMP investigating death on Sweetgrass First Nation

23h ago

About 23 per cent of recalculation decisions are applications from parents recalculating child support when their income changes.

Last fiscal year, the Recalculation Service issued a record 124 child support decisions. This year, 91 decisions have been issued to date, and these numbers are projected to increase with the addition of calculation services, putting the service on track to surpass last year’s record.

Saskatchewan’s Child Support Services also includes other programs and policies that help to resolve family law issues outside the courts including mandatory Family Dispute Resolution, the Family Law Screening program which reviews family court applications to ensure that they meet all requirements for the court process.

panews@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @pattisonmedia.com