Many parents desire to support their children, but find it difficult to do so. When faced with the loss of employment or a reduction in income, many individuals might desire to seek a modification of child support to take such limited income into consideration. There are some important pieces of information that individuals should know concerning modification of child support in situations including limited income. A Birmingham divorce lawyer can explain the details of the law.
While it can be difficult to initiate a child support modification in this type of a situation, modifications are often more preferable than becoming delinquent on child support payments and facing subsequent penalties. Individuals should file a child support modification petition as soon as possible after finding about reduced income or the child support amount will remain the same. The modification of a child support obligation only extends to the date of the filing of the motion, which means that individuals who experienced a sudden job loss then fail to immediately modify a child support order may be left to pay additional back pay.
For individuals who are out of work for an extended period of time, failing to modify child support can result in a significant financial obstacle. Individuals will be required to demonstrate that a substantial and unanticipated change in circumstance has occurred that requires a change in an existing support order. The loss of child support can constitute a sufficient enough change in circumstance to warrant a modification of an existing child support order. Without a motion for modification of child support, the original court order and the obligation to pay child support remain unchanged.
Individuals must understand that in many types of situations, the loss of a job might not result in a modification of child support. In these types of situations, a court is unlikely to change a child support order. Other times, a parent might purposefully become unemployed or underemployed in an effort to avoid having to make child support payments. If an individual quits a job without good cause, a court will likely impute income to the individual as if the individual were still employed or employed at a full capacity. If the parent who is obligated to pay child support receives income from unemployment benefits, most states allow the amount of child support in question to be deducted from these benefits. If an individual does not collect any unemployment benefits or profit from any source of income, a court might either temporarily suspend the obligation to pay child support or substantially reduce the amount of child support due.
If you recently experienced loss of employment or reduced income and are ordered to provide child support, do not hesitate to contact an experienced Birmingham divorce attorney with Alabama Divorce & Family Lawyers, LLC at (205) 255-1155.
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