My ex was ordered to pay temporary child/spousal support with a back support amount due as of when the case was filed. Without paying the back support, when my son turned 18 and graduated from HS, my ex and his lawyer decided to reduce child support. They did not petition the court, schedule an appearance or anything else - just redid calculations with one less child. From what I have read, you aren’t allowed to do that - you need to get the court to approve? And you’re not allowed to do that if you have back support still due? My lawyer tells me this is not true - it was ok for them to do that. I am having trouble believing this so I’m hoping for some confirmation since I can’t find any information that supports this. Thanks.
Child support Revisions
Child support automatically terminates when a child turns 18 and graduates high school - the latter of the two dates. If there are multiple children, then there would be a reduction of support, as your son’s support would automatically terminate. Usually, the payor of support would file an amended wage garnishment order that would remove the oldest child’s allocated support. The amended order would be the court’s “approval,” as the judge would have to sign it.
Yes, thank you for that. I understand the first part but my question was specifically regarding the fact that there was nothing filed with the court. He and his lawyer just reduced the support on their own. He is self-employed so there is no ‘garnishment’. Apologies for the confusion but my question was specifically focused on whether they are allowed to reduce support with no court involvement - especially when back support remains unpaid (in CA). Thank you!
Do judges consider private agreements if a child support modification is made due to change in custody schedule?
Currently we have 50/50 custody and do not have a formal court order for child support but have agreed to a certain amount which we have upheld.
Recently, my daughter’s mom (custodial parent) suggested move her to a different school where she will be closer to her (1.5 hours away from me). Through our private agreement, I would pay her $150 more and custody would change to 67% / 33%. I assume this amount is more so in my favor but it’s something we agreed would work.
My concern is that she is setting up the private agreement to establish the new custody schedule in order to take me for more later.
I know this sounds like I’m paranoid, but she has voluntarily quit her job to take care of her newborn, and has since been threatening to get more child support because she has no income. So I’m wondering if a private agreement would hold up in court if she demands more money at a later time.
Thanks for your consideration and time replying to me question.
Child support is always modifiable, which means that she can always request more support based on a timeshare change. This is the same whether it is a formal court order or a private agreement.