Court question? Motion to Modify?

[Riven]

Does anyone know what this means?

Long story short... My ex doesn't pay child support and hasn't for over a year ( maybe two now ) he had a court date for contempt of court, it was continued because he got an attorney. Today I received a notice for a court date "that the DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO MODIFY will be heard".

I'm assuming this is because he wants to get his support lowered? My lawyer ( the county defender ) does not want to expect this to happen. And we covered some good questions ( prior to being summons, we knew we'd be getting something but not sure what it would say ) including how can be afford a lawyer if he can't pay ANY child support?

Does anyone have any ideas on what I should expect?

There are a million reasons why it should not be modified and I'm going to make a list and try to get together with my attorney again before the hearing, a few of them being:

He's barely paid any money on child support
He's already been in jail once for not paying
He no way supports his daughter, her never buys her clothes or anything to help care for her.
He is supposed to have insurance on her and doesn't.
He doesn't help pay for her insurance.
He is supposed to pay half of her medical bills ( not covered my insurance ) and half of her daycare, which he has never done.
He is not trying to modify his other two child support cases, which happen to be with the girl he lives with.

This is not even including emotional or visitation reasons... This is strictly financial support.

Please let me know if anyone has any ideas on what might happen here, or if I have this all wrong or what. I don't even know how it went from contempt of court to a motion to modify...

 

[ticklechin]

Does he work and is his pay "on the books" or does he get paid under the table? Here in CA they use a computer program called Dissomaster to determine child support, the dirt bags who don't want to pay just get paid under the table and then play poor and end up with reductions, which a motion to modify is used.

 

[Riven]

I don't believe he works at all. From what I understand he stays home and watches the kids while she works... A mutual friend agrees, and has not heard of him working at all, not even under the table.

I wish I knew what they were going to say when we go to court. Nothing worse than taking a knife to a gun fight...

Everyone I've talked to ( friends, etc. ) have been like how did he hire a private lawyer if he can't pay his child support....

 

[greychins]

I'm with you on the how-did-he-hire-a-lawyer-if-he-can't-pay-child-support.

I know you're not in this state, but in Indiana, I know that you the payers of child support can make a motion to modify in the event something substantial changes regarding the factors that determine how much child support is paid (one being the income earned by the payer). In Indiana, if the payer is not working, I believe they can be made to pay some child support, but not much... because the idea is that if they're barely supporting themselves, they can't support the kids. Basically, if he was working when child support was originally computed, and isn't now, that's a "change in circumstances" that he could be trying to use to get the child support modified (and not in your favor, obviously).

In Indiana (sorry, I just know Indiana law), I know that if the payer doesn't pay child support they can do all sorts of things.. like you said he was in jail before, but they can try to attach the guy's tax refund check, try to impute income (like potentially, if he's sitting home and watching the kids, they could say, well, his "income" is the amount he saves on day care, so since he's saying x dollars a year on day care, x dollars is his income...)...

Have you been fighting to get him to pay child support? I know you said he was in jail once... and I understand that child support doesn't get paid in jail... but has anything been done since then? Child support is a legal obligation... I mean they take away professional licenses and all that if it's not paid... I don't think any father should be able to get out of paying their responsibility, it's their kid too!

 

[Riven]

After the last jail time, he worked for a while. In fact since he's been back with girl he basically hasn't been working, before that he did. They have taken away his driver lic. and he was in jail for not paying.

Laziness of not getting a job shouldn't count for a reason not to pay.

We're also going to find out if his other two cs cases ( with the girl he's living with ) have been modified, and find out why he even has cases on them, because he's living with them he doesn't have to pay her according to state law.

 

[greychins]

Laziness of not getting a job shouldn't count for a reason not to pay.

Oh I agree. I'm pretty sure in Indiana that.. I can't think of exactly how they word it... but it's something like if the payer doesn't have a job and the court believes that the reason he doesn't get a job is to mess with the system and avoid paying child support, they can impute him the income he would otherwise have from that job. I don't know if maybe Nebraska has a similar law...

Well, it sounds like he's really doing all he can to avoid paying... good luck!

 

[Riven]

When I talked with the CA about it, he agreed there was no reason he should not have a job. So he can try that, but we'll see...

 

[sheltiefan]

Yeah motion to modify is he is gonna try to change the court order. My ex didn't pay child support for 6 years. He would work under the table. Not to bum you out. But I cannot stand the courts. They would give me the run around. And tell me oh well we took his licence away and this away. I'm like freakin PUT HIM IN JAIL. Let him sit and think bout it. They never did. Finally I met a guy who after a 4 of fighting with my ex my husband now has adopted them. My ex still owes back child support and I still haven't seen a penny yet. Best thing to do though is record EVERY thing. If he is working under the table and you know someone who is willing to testify do so. Have them write a letter with there phone number. I am so sick of dads they wont man up and help pay for the children he help make. Good luck on getting your child support Im pullin for ya

 

[InkedupTara]

My brothers father is about 17 grand in arrears and is not allowed to step foot in PA or he will be put in jail for failure to pay for so long. He lives in Jersey and they are hard to get money from. My mother does get his income tax return which sucks because half of it is actually his wife's income tax return, but I guess that is what happens when you marry a dead beat.

Good luck.

 

[Riven]

That's what kills me as well Tara. His gf he lives with, they have two kids... doesn't she feel anything? Does she think that he'll never leave her and do the same thing?

They're not married, they never will be. I remember what it was like, I was the love of his life, Hailey was so important to him, he wasn't going to ever have anymore kids... I can go on forever... but things change. I couldn't be with a man, who didn't pay his child support. I've went out of my way to help him, and to make sure his daughter has a relationship with him, but I got tired of trying to work a two way deal myself... he never sees her and rarely calls her. He's gone periods of over six months without calling her, or even seeing if she's okay or not. I know these things are not related to this court case.

Luckily I've got a couple wild cards on my side and I'd be very surprised if things don't turn out okay for me on this, but the point is... as the CA said to me, it's cheaper not to write a bad check than to hire a lawyer to fight them...

I just wish I knew what to expect to happen at the court hearing... I'm sure he'll ask for me to forgive the past child support ( he has before ) because otherwise he's soooo far behind and can't get caught up... cry me a river, I'll build the bridge. I'll let him be a single parent, going to college, working full time and not getting any help, then we'll talk about it.

 

[Ziora]

I went through this. Child support enforcement had an attorney to represent my child. As it goes, if they don't work, it's based on a percentage of minimum wage. They have to find a way to get it, even if they don't work. Have you contacted child support enforcement? They were wonderful in working with me.

 

[mishellyshel]

If he doesn't have a job, the CS will be based & ordered however; he will go in arrears. If he files for taxes and gets any money back it goes to you. Otherwise the arrears just build until he does get a job. Also because he has other children, the amount gets lowered. It may catch up to him someday.

 

[eroomlorac]

Riven, my ex got behind on his share of the children's medical bills. Like your situation, we were ordered to split 50/50 what insurance didn't cover in medical costs. Of course, I paid them all while he ignored his half. The reason I paid all the bills is because I wanted to be able to bring my kids back to the doctor and not be told I have outstanding bills. I saved all those bills and my ex was ordered to pay his half. And he continued to pay until his share was paid in full. As my lawyer told me "He'll still be paying you long after the kids are beyond 18 years old." And he did. Except I must say I had the advantage that my ex works for the State of Illinois and if he gets behind in his payments he loses his nice, cushy job. His payroll deducted what he owed me and sent me a check directly. If I had to depend on him to write me a personal check, I would never have seen it. I wish you the best of luck in your situation.

 

[Riven]

He is currently over 6000 in arrears. The CA told me that they base the amount on how much he CAN earn, not what he's not earning, and his history shows he can earn over $18/ hr. He also said that just because he's out having more kids, doesn't affect how much he pays for this one.

 

[eroomlorac]

That's right, Nichole. He is financially responsible for your daughter no matter how many other kids he has. My ex was $9,000 in arrears with medical alone. That included glasses, braces, routine exams, sick exams, dental work, etc. It really adds up over the years.

 

[Riven]

He's never paid any of Hailey's medical, I quit keeping track years ago. She should have a retainer right now... but yea, maybe when I start getting child support.

 

[alpayton]

In KY, if anything happens in the lives of either party (mother or father) that can reduce or increase the amount of child support by 15%, they can request a hearing for modification of child support. Otherwise, it can be revisited at the request of either side every 2 yrs. However, the CS is based on the party's ABILITY TO PAY, not what they're currently earning. Silver lining!

Here's a long story for ya...

My exhusband (works for the USPS and has since we before we were divorced in 2002) has been paying his CS by wage deduction thru the USPS and I get the $ via direct deposit from the State of KY, so I never have had to worry about whether or not the CS was paid. So when we separated, Pierce was 14 months old and going to day care. His CS was figured based on day care expenses of over $120/week. He was paying CS in excess of $700/month. Pierce stopped going to day care when he entered Kindergarten when he was 5, so roughly 5 years ago. The ex told me to take the extra money I was getting from his CS (since I was no longer having to pay out the day care) and put it into an account for Pierce. I did that - set up a custodial acct with a brokerage firm and started putting away the $ that I would have spent on day care. Then a couple of years ago, the ex decided it would be a stupendous idea to take me to court and 1) file for residential custody and 2) file for modification of child support.

Long story short, he lost #1 but won #2. AND I had to give him the over $10,000 he'd overpaid and I'd put aside into that account for Pierce. His CS was lowered to just shy of $500/month. Since then, I was totally unemployed for 18 months but haven't bothered to go back to court for modification.

Anyway, now whenever the ex tells me to do something with $, I tell him to write it up in a statement and sign the blasted thing. I'll be darned if that you-know-what is gonna do that crap to me again; this is not Amanda Savings and Loan.

Thank heavens he does have a good job, he has kept Pierce's Federal Insurance current, and I don't have to worry about not getting CS regularly and on time. Now if I had to wait for him to write a check, I'd have been screwed a long time ago.

I've been told from others who have children whose fathers have other children that they've been told by county attorneys and child support offices that the 1st child's (or 2nd or whatever) CS will never go down because the father has another child later on. Reason they were given was that no matter how many children the father has, every child is entitled to a certain level of support from the father.

Good luck in your upcoming battle...I sincerely hope it goes well for you!

 

[Bostongirl'sChin75]

I don't have any other information I can offer to you, but I did want to let you know that I hope everything goes okay for you with this. My own father was a dead beat who never paid any kind of support for me or my mom, after he left us both for the next door neighbor and the daughter that he fathered with her, so I know what you and your daughter are going through. I will say a special prayer for you and her that everything goes your way and that the judge sees your ex for what he is.