[CO]
It’s been a year since my divorce was finalized, and reviewing the parenting plan, it seems my co-parent may have intentionally overstated their parenting time to qualify for the Schedule B support worksheet and joint physical custody. The actual time spent with our kids was less than 90 overnights. It changes the child support obligation by a few hundred dollars. Is this something that warrants modification, and if so, is there any way to ask for back pay for the year?
NAL - I live in the US. In my state, child support has nothing to do with visitation schedules. They keep it fully separate to prevent individuals from fighting for custody based on who gets child support. There are exceptions, but essentially, the bigger earner has no motivation to lie or fight for more time. If the earnings change, that’s when support can change. In our decree, because my ex lied about income and debts, it was written it could only be increased, and could never decrease. There was some wording so that if my own support were ended prior to child support ending, the child support would be increased to the amount of the total of both. Somehow my ex got my support ended months before the child support, but they failed to increase the child support. By this time, I had protection orders, and my lawyer felt the risks of going to court (safety-wise) outweighed the benefits. You would need to look at your personal decree and state/local regulations around it to know if there is any benefit in it. If you are going to do it, do it now, but I’m not sure if they would increase it prior to filing or just moving forward. I would get the parenting plan corrected and see what a lawyer in your area recommends regarding the fact they overstated their time to reduce child support. There might be contempt or other possible filings you could do for that, and you might be able to get it since it would have been done to avoid child support they should have paid.
NAL.
I am guessing the actual rules depend on where you live. In my location, child support can be modified if it changes by at least $75 per month and it is more than a 20% change (my lawyer says that’s an ‘and’; someone at the child support office for my county said it was ‘or’). In my location, you do not get compensation for the past. You would also need to document the nights that are missed. Email/text messages would be fine. Anyway, you probably want to consult an attorney.
What is your objective in attempting to make this modification?
EdwardGenesis said:
What is your objective in attempting to make this modification?
More money, of course. That’s all they ever seem to be after.
EdwardGenesis said:
What is your objective in attempting to make this modification?
More money, of course. That’s all they ever seem to be after.
I disagree! Sometimes, people are looking to spend less money.
@Dana
Lmao, got me there. Seeing as OP is clearly bringing up the difference in support she would get, it’s all about the Benjamins.
LegalLiam said:
@Dana
Lmao, got me there. Seeing as OP is clearly bringing up the difference in support she would get, it’s all about the Benjamins.
Kids aren’t cheap.
LegalLiam said:
@Dana
Lmao, got me there. Seeing as OP is clearly bringing up the difference in support she would get, it’s all about the Benjamins.
Kids aren’t cheap.
And in a world where women say they want equality, what prevents them from going out and working their ass off for a good earning career? Nothing. Instead, let’s just leech off of our baby daddy…
LegalLiam said:
@Dana
Lmao, got me there. Seeing as OP is clearly bringing up the difference in support she would get, it’s all about the Benjamins.
And she should be; that money is to help raise their child. It’s quite disgusting her ex is trying to weasel his way out of properly supporting their child.
@Ellie
Maybe if she can’t afford the child, go 50/50 or let him raise the kids. I’m all for paying child support, as long as it ACTUALLY goes towards the child.
LegalLiam said:
@Dana
Lmao, got me there. Seeing as OP is clearly bringing up the difference in support she would get, it’s all about the Benjamins.
OP should be. If their ex is lying about parenting time to reduce child support, their children aren’t receiving the money they are entitled to.
@Daisy
OP didn’t do her due diligence before signing? If he said 1 number on paper/in court, why wasn’t it caught then?
LegalLiam said:
@Dana
Lmao, got me there. Seeing as OP is clearly bringing up the difference in support she would get, it’s all about the Benjamins.
I agree with ‘it’s all about the Benjamins.’
Yes, you’d file a contempt form that will get in front of the judge. You can ask on the form to be awarded back pay or lessen your support until it’s paid.
Ansel said:
Yes, you’d file a contempt form that will get in front of the judge. You can ask on the form to be awarded back pay or lessen your support until it’s paid.
Co-parent is currently paying what is ordered and not knowingly breaking a court order. Contempt is not in play here. This is bad advice. Better advice is to file a motion to modify based on a change in circumstances. Then explain the whole ordeal and prove that the parenting time is intact different and it would mean an increase in support. From my understanding, back pay will only be awarded back to the date of filing the motion to modify.
Ansel said:
Yes, you’d file a contempt form that will get in front of the judge. You can ask on the form to be awarded back pay or lessen your support until it’s paid.
I don’t know that a contempt action would be appropriate given that it doesn’t sound like your co-parent has knowingly violated any court order that you’re trying to enforce. The child support calculation is based on the parenting plan on paper, so you were on the right track with seeking a modification of the parenting time schedule to match what’s actually been happening, along with a modification of the child support order to match the new formal schedule.
Ansel said:
Yes, you’d file a contempt form that will get in front of the judge. You can ask on the form to be awarded back pay or lessen your support until it’s paid.
Thank you! It’s the non-custodial parent who pays me, the custodial parent, child support, which has been substantially less with the actual dates. I’m not sure if that would change anything, but I am the one paid support.
@Arden
Why don’t you make him take the kids for what he says he is? At least with my ex, once I made him parent, he eventually chose to drop the ball and leave completely. Which is not what I wanted, but is what was best for my son in the end.
@Arden
See other replies to this comment. Contempt is not warranted.