revision of child support

[cdesharn]

What is the name of your state? Florida
Hi, I got divorced in 1994. We were very civil and handled our own divorce without lawyers. Because of that, I did not take into account that my son would someday go to college. When I spoke to my ex about that, he said he thought he was done when our son turns 18. I couldn't believe it. He just turned 14. Also, he only pays $400 per month in child support. He is now making over $150,000 per year salary, drives a BMW and a Miata has just remarried and has a stepson. I found out that he owns condos and land around Florida too. I want to protect my son now that he has a new family and I'm worried that he will try to hide his assets. Also, in the divorce papers he was supposed to cover our son for medical and dental and cried to me that he couldn't afford it, so my husband and I have been taking care of that. I told my ex that I wanted to discuss something with him last weekend and he figured out what it was and now is avoiding me. I thought maybe we could work this out on our own but now I'm not so sure. What rights does my son have? I appreciate any advice. Thanks.

 

[nicetryadmin]

What is the name of your state? Florida
Hi, I got divorced in 1994. We were very civil and handled our own divorce without lawyers. Because of that, I did not take into account that my son would someday go to college. When I spoke to my ex about that, he said he thought he was done when our son turns 18. I couldn't believe it. He just turned 14. Also, he only pays $400 per month in child support. He is now making over $150,000 per year salary, drives a BMW and a Miata has just remarried and has a stepson. I found out that he owns condos and land around Florida too. I want to protect my son now that he has a new family and I'm worried that he will try to hide his assets. Also, in the divorce papers he was supposed to cover our son for medical and dental and cried to me that he couldn't afford it, so my husband and I have been taking care of that. I told my ex that I wanted to discuss something with him last weekend and he figured out what it was and now is avoiding me. I thought maybe we could work this out on our own but now I'm not so sure. What rights does my son have? I appreciate any advice. Thanks.

What rights are far as**************??????

If he's not following a court order to pay medical bills, then you could file a motion to show cause for contempt in court.

 

[ceara19]

What is the name of your state? Florida
Hi, I got divorced in 1994. We were very civil and handled our own divorce without lawyers. Because of that, I did not take into account that my son would someday go to college. When I spoke to my ex about that, he said he thought he was done when our son turns 18. I couldn't believe it. He just turned 14. Also, he only pays $400 per month in child support. He is now making over $150,000 per year salary, drives a BMW and a Miata has just remarried and has a stepson. I found out that he owns condos and land around Florida too. I want to protect my son now that he has a new family and I'm worried that he will try to hide his assets. Also, in the divorce papers he was supposed to cover our son for medical and dental and cried to me that he couldn't afford it, so my husband and I have been taking care of that. I told my ex that I wanted to discuss something with him last weekend and he figured out what it was and now is avoiding me. I thought maybe we could work this out on our own but now I'm not so sure. What rights does my son have? I appreciate any advice. Thanks.

It's been 12 YEARS. If dad's making substancially more money, it's time to file to have the support order modified. $400/month for a man earning $150K a year doesn't sound right. When you file to modify the support order, you can ASK for college expenses to be addressed, but it's doubtful that it will be allowed 12 years after the fact.

 

[cdesharn]

What rights are far as**************??????

If he's not following a court order to pay medical bills, then you could file a motion to show cause for contempt in court.

I mean rights as far as my son receiving higher child support, money for college (like splitting the cost 50/50 with me), any type of claim to his father's land, etc. Is this something we could work out on our own. If not, how much does something like this cost to take to court?

 

[MrsK]

You can file for a revision of the child support. Use a calculator for your state to determine approximately what the increase could be.

Florida doesnt make NCP's pay for college as far as I've been able to find, I would not count on dad to pay for anything, even 50/50, at least on paper b/c that could screw him.

As far as land....your ex husband isnt dead, what type of "claim" do you think your son has on it?? Also I am not sure how Floriday law works as far as inheritance but he may be able to make it so that your son gets nothing upon his death, IF thats what he wants to do. What makes you think your son is automatically entitled to receive LANDS from his father????

Its hard to say how much it would cost to take it to court. You could file with SES if you would like, it usually doesnt cost much but they take forever & there are a lot of drawbacks to using them.

 

[nicetryadmin]

I mean rights as far as my son receiving higher child support,

You should be reviewing your state statutes regarding the time of reviewing child support. That would be your responsibility. The person paying certainly isn't going to initiate that.

money for college (like splitting the cost 50/50 with me),

The child is now an adult at college. Age 18. You should've addressed that in the divorce decree. You can always try now, but who knows how a judge will order. Unless the child is disabled, I wouldn't hold your breath.

any type of claim to his father's land, etc.

Property issues are usually mentioned in a will. You have no control over that.

Is this something we could work out on our own.

You can try, but I wouldn't count on it. You seem to be confusing child support over one's property.

If not, how much does something like this cost to take to court?

Costs vary.

 

[stealth2]

The child is now an adult at college. Age 18. You should've addressed that in the divorce decree. You can always try now, but who knows how a judge will order. Unless the child is disabled, I wouldn't hold your breath.

Sigh... dude - please do try to read the posts. The boy is 14, not 18. OP is trying to get this sorted out BEFORE the kid turns 18. In 4 years.

 

[nicetryadmin]

Sigh... dude - please do try to read the posts. The boy is 14, not 18. OP is trying to get this sorted out BEFORE the kid turns 18. In 4 years.

Right, but there's no guarantee it'll be ordered, unless the child is disabled. Unless there is case law in FL to support that divorced parents have a legal obligation to support their children, regardless if it was in an original divorce decree or not.

 

[Gracie3787]

I mean rights as far as my son receiving higher child support, money for college (like splitting the cost 50/50 with me), any type of claim to his father's land, etc. Is this something we could work out on our own. If not, how much does something like this cost to take to court?

Higher child support- you need to file for a modification of CS. You do not have to have an attorney. If CSE is involved in your case they can file, if not you can do it yourself. The forms and other info can be found at www.flcourts.org/

Money for college- In Florida a court CANNOT order any college support. So you should go ahead and put some of the CS into savings now, and keep informed about the options for student loans when he goes to college.

Claim to father's land, other assets- Legally, none. It is entirely up to the parent, a court cannot order anything on this issue. (In the same way the legally your children do not have any legal claims to YOUR land/assets).

The filing fees vary, but you can ask the court clerk about them and ask for a waiver.

 

[cdesharn]

You can file for a revision of the child support. Use a calculator for your state to determine approximately what the increase could be.

Florida doesnt make NCP's pay for college as far as I've been able to find, I would not count on dad to pay for anything, even 50/50, at least on paper b/c that could screw him.

As far as land....your ex husband isnt dead, what type of "claim" do you think your son has on it?? Also I am not sure how Floriday law works as far as inheritance but he may be able to make it so that your son gets nothing upon his death, IF thats what he wants to do. What makes you think your son is automatically entitled to receive LANDS from his father????

Its hard to say how much it would cost to take it to court. You could file with SES if you would like, it usually doesnt cost much but they take forever & there are a lot of drawbacks to using them.

I'm concerned about my son because my ex husband has remarried and has a stepson. This is for the future. I want to make sure that he is a beneficiary but if that is up to the father to do then I can only request that I guess. It just isn't right. He's such a liar. He lied about his BMW and said his boss gave it to him as a company car. Did you ever hear of that unless you're the President of a company? He lied that he got free tickets to Las Vegas. Then he tries to make my son think he's poor. He hasn't even fulfilled the obligations of the original papers. He's always been a liar and always will be and he's very sneaky and I'm just concerned for my son. So in your opinion, you think that college is not going to be forced on him? If he doesn't have to pay half or offer to pay half, this will hurt my son. I guess I will find a lawyer in my area that I can afford and see what happens. Thanks for the advice.

 

[cdesharn]

Higher child support- you need to file for a modification of CS. You do not have to have an attorney. If CSE is involved in your case they can file, if not you can do it yourself. The forms and other info can be found at www.flcourts.org/

Money for college- In Florida a court CANNOT order any college support. So you should go ahead and put some of the CS into savings now, and keep informed about the options for student loans when he goes to college.

Claim to father's land, other assets- Legally, none. It is entirely up to the parent, a court cannot order anything on this issue. (In the same way the legally your children do not have any legal claims to YOUR land/assets).

The filing fees vary, but you can ask the court clerk about them and ask for a waiver.

Thanks for the info. So basically college will end up being paid by me unless he gets a conscience. But I will file for higher child support. Do you know what the percentage of salary it is and is it the salary he makes now or from the past 3 W2's like they did originally? Thanks again.

 

[ceara19]

Thanks for the info. So basically college will end up being paid by me unless he gets a conscience. But I will file for higher child support. Do you know what the percentage of salary it is and is it the salary he makes now or from the past 3 W2's like they did originally? Thanks again.

The CS should be set based on current earnings. The reason the court requests the past 3 tax returns is so that if a person is intentionally UNDEREMPLOYED to avoid higher CS payments, the court can get a better idea of what the person is ABLE to earn.

 

[Gracie3787]

Thanks for the info. So basically college will end up being paid by me unless he gets a conscience. But I will file for higher child support. Do you know what the percentage of salary it is and is it the salary he makes now or from the past 3 W2's like they did originally? Thanks again.

Florida uses shared incomes. You can find the CS guidelines at www.flsenate.gov/STATUTES/ Chapter 61. It will be calculated using his and your present incomes.

 

[Ohiogal]

Property issues are usually mentioned in a will. You have no control over that.


You can try, but I wouldn't count on it. You seem to be confusing child support over one's property.

Costs vary.

Property a lot of time passes outside of probate by virtue of jtwrs or tod .. depends on how the property is deeded.

 

[Ohiogal]

I'm concerned about my son because my ex husband has remarried and has a stepson. This is for the future. I want to make sure that he is a beneficiary but if that is up to the father to do then I can only request that I guess.

You cannot force his father to make him a beneficiary to anything unless it was something stipulated when you were first divorced. Even then he may not have anything in the estate.

'It just isn't right. He's such a liar. He lied about his BMW and said his boss gave it to him as a company car. Did you ever hear of that unless you're the President of a company?

Yes I have heard of that. Depends on what type of company you are in. But people selling makeup have been given cadillac's for sales. So depending on what type of work he does he could have received a BMW.

He lied that he got free tickets to Las Vegas.

What makes you think he lied? He could have gotten free tickets to Vegas. I have received many phone calls regarding trips and all I have to do is sign a contract to listen to a timeshare presentation for three hours. Depends on what it is you want to do. Or he could have won them in a raffle or his job could have given them to him. Anything is possible.


Then he tries to make my son think he's poor. He hasn't even fulfilled the obligations of the original papers.

then why haven't you taken him to court regarding CONTEMPT?

He's always been a liar and always will be and he's very sneaky and I'm just concerned for my son.

You sound extremely bitter.

So in your opinion, you think that college is not going to be forced on him?

Right. We don't think your ex will be forced to pay for college for your (plural) son.

If he doesn't have to pay half or offer to pay half, this will hurt my son.

How is it going to hurt your son? There are so many avenues to take to pay for college.
he can get a job, apply for grants and loans and scholarships, pay his own way. If your son wants to go to school, he will make it through college quite fine with no one's help.

I guess I will find a lawyer in my area that I can afford and see what happens. Thanks for the advice.

Ask CSEA to do a child support modification review if it has been more than three years since the last payment. From what I see you have been basing a lot of your "facts" on assumptions.