Anyone have any legal info or been there done that advice on this?

Question

About 3 years ago I took my exhusband "to the cleaners". His CS was so high it totally wiped him out financially. Then to top it off he got fired from the high paying job a year later. Now he's in a hole he can't get out of.

We need a drastic CS reduction. What is best way to go about this? Should we go to an attorney together? Or should we modify it downward through CS enforcement. We both agree to $400 a month. He hasn't paid in a year because he just hasn't had the money since he lost that job. What's the best way to get this taken care of and make things fair.

Please no judgemental comments, I'm racked with guilt as it is. Thanks in advance for any good info.

Answer 1

There are several steps you need to take; you are right, you should contact your local child support authority and they will take the neccesary steps to modify your child support (no legal fees for you).
You can agree to the amount IF no state aid is being expended on behalf of the children. If the children are receiving medicaid or the household receives food stamps, you have to go by the state child support guidelines.
As for the back child support ("arrears") owed, you can forgive those. The child support office will be able to draw up an affidavit for you to sign saying you forgive the arrears and they will be dropped, so long as it is not money owed to the state (for any benefits expended while you were pregnant).

There is a lot more information that your local chid support office can give you, and if your local office is like our office here, they are 100% willing to help and make both you and your ex happy.

Answer 2

Let go of the guilt, he's a big boy and he was in court with a lawyer just like you when the cs was awarded. If he wasn't, he could have been, right??? So let that go.

Him, not you, he needs to go to an attorney and have them file a petition to reduce the cs based on his current income. If you don't want to make a stink over the missing back payments, don't, the court will ask if he is current and that's when you would have to step up to say "I told him it was ok until he got back on his feet." The court will then issue a new order with a new amount, it's not a big deal. They do it all the time.

If you feel obligated pay for the attorney's time, that would be more than fair.

Answer 3

Because you are both in agreement and it sounds like the two of you can work this out ammicably, you should consider court mediation. Call your local family court for a referral to a mediation center. In many communities there is a not-for-profit that will do the paperwork and present it to the judge for free.

If you do not have free mediation in your county, then you still have options. Go to your local family court (in the country where the child resides) and request a petition to modify support. The paperwork is fairly easy to complete yourself. File this with the clerk of the Family Court and they will give you your court date and time. The two of you will appear together and you will plead your case to the judge.

The judge will most likely grant you exactly what you are asking for because the two of you are in agreement. You will not need to be represented by an attorney. And, should his financial situation improve, you can always refile for more support in the future.

Best of luck!

Answer 4

He needs to apply to the court to reduce the child support payment. If the court agrees, it will be adjusted. You can appear on his behalf and agree to the reduction. He needs to see a lawyer.

Answer 5

You admit taking him to the cleaners and now your guilty that he's broke. Hmmmmmmmmmm. Maybe you can find a way for him to buy you a soul.

Answer 6

He should go to his attorney and have him create the petition.