Family Justice Services Western
Final Evaluation
2004-FCY-8E
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APPENDIX 1A: RECALCULATION SURVEY INSTRUMENT
Survey of Recalculation Services
Family Justice Services Western
Survey person reads attached text to all potential participants and then obtains their consent to participate.
Introduction / Consent
Hi, my name is 
and I am with a private research company, IHRD. We have been contracted by the provincial and federal governments to study the recalculation of child support. Your name has been provided to us by Family Justice Services Western as a person who has either paid or received child support under an order with a recalculation clause. We would like to interview you about your experiences, the purpose to see what impact recalculation has had on you and your children. The interview should take about 10-15 minutes. Your responses will be kept confidential. Are you willing to be interviewed? (If yes) Is now a good time for you or can I call back?
Description of Recalculation
Family Justice Services Western has recently been involved in a test of the process of child support recalculation. Recalculation refers to a process where the amount of child and being paid is reviewed automatically and outside court, based on the income of the person paying support. It is intended to provide a means other than going to court, to address changes in the financial circumstances of the person paying support, or both parties in some shared custody arrangements. This review of the income of the payor is performed by a recalculation clerk, who calculates the amount to be paid, and then informs the parties in writing of the results. The courts will confirm the recalculated amounts where there is no objection, and a recalculation order is made. If there is an objection, the courts will conduct a hearing to determine the outcome.
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Do you currently …
- a.Pay child support?
- i.Yes→Q2
- ii.No→Q3
- iii.Don't know→Q3
- iv.Refused→Q3
- b.Receive child support?
- i. Yes→Q2
- ii. No→Q3
- iii. Don't know→Q3
- iv. Refused→Q3
- If yes, when did your original order come into effect (year)?
- Was this by agreement (either on your own, through mediation or through lawyers) or did the court have to decide the support amount? Agreement court decided
- a.Pay child support?
- In how many of the past 12 months have you paid / received…
- Child support
- i.
(Enter # of months): - ii.Don't know
- iii.Refused
- i.
- Child support
- When was your order recalculated (note: has to have been after June 1, 2002)?
- a.(Enter date):
- b. Don't know
- c. Refused
- a.
- What was your order recalculated based on? Was it…
- a.Revenue Canada information (Prompt: Did the payor provide income tax information)
- b.Consumer Price Index
- c.Don't know
- d. Refused
- What was the outcome of recalculation in terms of the amount of support to be paid? Did it…
- a.Stay the same→Q7
- b.Increase→Q6
- c.Decrease→Q6
- d.Don't know→Q7
- e.Refused→Q7
- By how much per month did the amount of support increase/decrease?
- a.$. 00
- b.Don't know
- c.Refused
- a.$
- Was the amount of support, as determined by recalculation, what you expected?
- a.Yes→Q9
- b.No→Q8
- c.Don't know→Q9
- d.Refused→Q9
- Could you tell me why you expected a different amount?
- a.
- b. Don't know
- c. Refused
- Have you / your ex filed an objection concerning the recalculated amount? (Prompt: Any objection would have been filed in court.)
- d. Yes→Q10
- e. No→Q11
- f. Don't know→Q11
- g. Refused→Q11
- a.
- Did this change the outcome?
- a.Yes
- b.No
- c.Don't know
- d.Too early to tell—process not complete
- e.Refused
- Are you satisfied with the outcome of recalculation?
- a.Yes
- b.No
- c. Don't know→Q13
- d. Refused→Q13
- Why/Why not?
-
- a.Don't know
- b.Refused
-
- Has the outcome of recalculation had any impact on your relationship with the person you pay support to/receive support from?
- a.Yes
- b. No→Q15
- c. Don't know→Q15
- d. Refused→Q15
- What type of impact did it have? (prompt: if negative, prompt concerning danger / safety)
-
- Don't know
- Refused
-
- Do you feel automatic recalculation is a fair means of determining child support to be paid, after an initial agreement or order?
- a.Yes→Q16
- b.No→Q17
- c.Don't know→Q18
- d.Refused→Q18
- Why do you think it is fair?
-
- Don't know→Q18
- Refused→Q18
-
- Why don't you think it is fair?
-
- Don't know
- Refused
-
- Have you ever been involved in a court procedure for a variation in support amounts paid by you/to you?
- a.Yes→Q19
- b.No→Q21
- c.Don't know→Q21
- d.Refused→Q21
- How does your experience with recalculation compare with your court experience in having your amounts recalculated?
- a.Recalculation and legal process about the same
- b.Recalculation better
- c.Legal Process better
- d.Don't know→Q21
- e.Refused→Q21
- Why do you feel this way?
-
- a.Don't know
- b.Refused
-
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Any other comments? (prompt: suggested improvements to process, e.g. letter notification)
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