Has anyone gone back and challenged amount of child support?

jimsmythee · 2022-11-14T18:45:30+00:00

The state allows you to submit for a change in circumstances for CS.

If it's been more than 2 years or if there's a 25% change in the amount for CS.

When doing our divorce, my exwife put her income down as $0 and herself getting full custody of the kids, in order to maximize CS $'s I would owe her. The judge didn't buy her "took sick to work" argument. The judge gave me 50/50 custody and gave her a deeded income of minimum wage 40 hours/week. Plus I pay the kids health insurance, so my support obligation to her was minimal.

Fast forward 18 months, we was flat broke and still not working. Her new husband was threatening to leave her unless she brought in some money. What did she do? Get a job? Hell no! She submitted new CS paperwork modification. Again, putting her income down as $0, her having full custody, and that I pay $0 for the kids health insurance. She thought this would fly. And she was nice enough to fluff up my income #'s as well. So this would have quadrupled my CS $ to her.

I requested a hearing, and the judge granted it. I submitted my evidence of how much I actually make and what I actually pay for health insurance. The judge again didn't buy her "too sick to work" argument.

BeneficialAbalone578 · 2022-11-14T17:21:54+00:00

I’m not totally knowledgeable on the specifics even in my state because I haven’t done it, but you can do it here without involvement from lawyers at the 3 yr point I think. Lawyer can also assist but that would cost money of course, though shouldn’t be much.

Anyways…it will be state specific so your best bet is to start searching online for your state. Yes it’s definitely doable in cases where her income is taken into account for the cs initially, and especially if there’s substantial change like you seem to describe. If you’re not the custodial parent and it’s not a 50/50 thing, then her income may be totally irrelevant. Women/men shouldn’t have anything to do with it, it’s just math at this point.

deadBeefCafe2014 · 2022-11-14T20:48:58+00:00

Yup. She got DOR involved while I was unemployed so when I got my offer letter, my lawyer filed in court.

Dropped about $60/wk.

The rate has stayed the same for a bunch of years, and with what inflation is doing, I’m not going to disrupt the status quo. Oldest turns 18 in a couple years. And will leave it alone until my youngest is of age if I can.

dday_throwaway3 · 2022-11-14T18:52:18+00:00

In the US, every state has rules about how often you can recalculate CS. In some states it's 2 years, 3 years in others, and some recognize a delta of more than 15% in incomes. You can easily google it for your state.

If she's underemployed, then why haven't you performed a vocational evaluation? Best $5k you will ever spend, as it will pay for itself.

DetroiterInTX · 2022-11-14T19:44:00+00:00

I know for the county we filed in (in PA), there is requirement to notify other party of material changes to income within 10 days. My attorney advised 10% threshold for material change, but caseworker advised being more conservative.

If there is reason to believe there has been a material change, file for reassessment. Be forewarned that it may not help you out… my ex started working a new job which resulted in income almost 3x the imputed income, and it didn’t change the calculations of support due because things now fell under non-standard calculations for high income….

mehmench · 2022-11-14T22:27:04+00:00

In California you can request financial information (income and expense disclosures - FL-150) every 12 months I think (might be more).

It depends on how your child support is being taken out. If it's being done by the local child support services department, you can file for a modification through them at any time I believe. If you think she has a new job and is making more money then it makes sense to ask for an income and expense declaration at minimum.

If you aren't doing it through an agency that garnishes your wages and instead are paying against a court order voluntarily then you would usually file for the income/expense declaration by serving it to them in the mail. They have to respond or they could be held in contempt and if they are dishonest they could end up with perjury charges. They have to provide the previous two months worth of pay stubs.

If she isn't making more money though and in fact is making less or you are actually making more she could end up with more money coming her way. Just be careful with the situation and go in eyes wide open.

Best bet is to do this through your attorney if you aren't being garnished.

Title	Has anyone gone back and challenged amount of child support?
Author	rsmiley77
Upvotes	5
Comments	19
Date	November 14, 2022 2:53 PM UTC (3 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/Divorce_Men
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/Divorce_Men/comments/yv1pib/has_anyone_gone_back_and_challenged_amount_of/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/Divorce_Men/has-anyone-gone-back-and-challenged-amount-of.1144586 https://theredarchive.com/post/1144586

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