My husband’s ex is ‘self employed’ which honestly raises some questions, and she claims to make below minimum wage since she can’t work full time because she has a 9-month-old and is a single parent. My husband has primary custody of their two kids, and she pays him child support. Now, she’s gotten married to some guy she’s only been dating for about 4 months and is claiming she’s pregnant again. She says she won’t be able to work after giving birth, which means she won’t be able to pay child support. I’m really curious if a judge will actually have any empathy for her situation or if my husband has a good chance of winning if he fights her on this.
Honestly, I don’t think the judge will have much empathy. Child support may be reduced after the new child is born, but it won’t be canceled. Your husband shouldn’t let her off the hook because she’s having another kid.
Make sure she’s on child support enforcement. Your husband should get any tax refunds if she owes money.
Every time she tries to get the child support reduced by claiming she’s not working, your husband should petition the court to calculate her support based on assumed income. They’ll pull her tax returns and calculate it from those numbers. She can choose not to work, but it won’t matter.
The judge won’t care about her new pregnancy or lack of income. Plenty of single parents manage to work while raising kids. It’s not an excuse.
What exactly are you hoping to ‘win’ in this situation? Just curious.
She owes your husband the money regardless of her job situation or pregnancy status. If she doesn’t pay, he should go to court. Most states will rule in his favor.
If she voluntarily chooses not to work, many states will impute an income based on her work history. The later children are her responsibility. If there’s an existing child support order, it doesn’t go away just because she isn’t working. If she doesn’t pay, the deficit will accumulate, and your husband can send her case to the child support recovery agency.
I’ve seen situations where you can win a court order, but collecting can be the real challenge. It’s often an expensive piece of paper if they ignore it. Sometimes it’s better to cut your losses.
If he chooses to fight, he can have her income imputed based on her past earnings or minimum wage. The issue is collecting support. If she won’t work or pay voluntarily, getting the money can be tough. He should pursue all enforcement methods, but don’t rely on actually seeing any of that money.
In Virginia, if she chooses to be a stay-at-home parent and can’t pay child support, the court might consider her new husband’s income when calculating support since he’s supporting her.
She shouldn’t get a pass on paying for her child just because she decided to have another baby. I’m more concerned about her having a baby with someone she barely knows.
My ex doesn’t work but gets VA benefits. As long as he makes even a small payment, they won’t enforce court orders. It’s frustrating for sure.
She has an obligation to support her child. If she’s not paying, your husband should file a motion to compel and then file for contempt if she still doesn’t pay.
In Virginia, the minimum payment amount for child support is $68 a month, even if she’s unemployed or has no income.
You can’t get blood from a stone, and a judge isn’t likely to put a pregnant woman in jail for failing to pay. If her new husband has a low income too, it’s unlikely you’ll get anything.
It’s crazy how much effort people will put into cheating the system instead of just doing the right thing. She’s living off food stamps and government housing, and I suspect she’s trying to get more money by having another kid.