where or what do you do when an ex is great at cheating the system, he owes alot in back pay child support?

Question

I am a mom of a seventeen year old girl, I got divorced in 1993 when she was only three years old. Her father was ordered to pay $142.00 a week to us. He was great at his obligations to his child untill she got to be 10 years of age. At time he remarried and stopped paying the support order. I have tried with out any success for seven years to collect monies owed. He currently owes fifty-two thousand three hundred and twenty-two dollars in back pay. I hear all these stories of the moms taking the dad to the cleaners, let me tell you how it has been for me, I took him to court the first time and he lied to the courts and told them he pre-payed me, they told me it was my duty to prove that he did not pay not him that has to prove he paid and was told to come back, then I had him served twice and he was a no show, and they told me I served him wrong, I tried a support agency for two years, still nothing. we go back to court this week, Im hoping that the system does not fail me again.

Answer 1

The child support system is just another Govt agency, and it really sucks at times.
Do yourself and your daughter a favor, search the yellow pages and get your own attorney. Attorneys that handle this type of cases understand the law and process sometimes better than the collection agency.
Yes, you might be out some money up front, but Federal child support collection laws encourage judges to make the deadbeat parent pay the other parent's legal fees. I had to do this with my ex to make her pay up, my attorney and I proved that her and her attorney lied to the courts and filed false papers. Her attorney had sanctions placed on herself by the courts, my ex has NO credibility left with the local courts.
For the most part you are wasting your time and energy having your local support office help......just remember this fact, most child support enforcement agencies started in the local welfare offices....nuff said?
Good luck!

Answer 2

Support agencies have a lot more tools now than a few years ago. Any payments are required to go through the agency so there is no doubt about amounts paid. Money given outside the agency is considered a gift. I admit, the agencies can be slow, but do get the job done. My wifes ex loses his drivers license about every 3 months until he catches up back support (a case like yours where 16 years of back child support is due) You can also hire an attorney and file for attorney fees along with the back support. Good luck.