modification

[jlop]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX
I have been paying CS for the last 15 yrs. and now my child turned 18 in March and will be graduating in May and my ex. is threatening to take me to court and get a modification for me to continue paying until she is done with college. The original divorce decree states that i pay until she is 18 and or graduates high school, can this type of modification be made or is she blowing smoke? THANKS

 

[Proserpina]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX
I have been paying CS for the last 15 yrs. and now my child turned 18 in March and will be graduating in May and my ex. is threatening to take me to court and get a modification for me to continue paying until she is done with college. The original divorce decree states that i pay until she is 18 and or graduates high school, can this type of modification be made or is she blowing smoke? THANKS

Yes, it's possible.

But until/unless you are served, there's little you can do about it.

 

[mistoffolees]

Yes, it's possible.

Maybe, maybe not. In some states, once the child is 18, it is impossible to request a change in child support - even if the child support is still going until graduation. Typically, if you want child support to run through college, that must be requested at the time of the original order. Someone familiar with TX rules will have to explain whether that's true in TX.

YBut until/unless you are served, there's little you can do about it.

That's absolutely good advice. People would be a lot happier if they spent less time worrying about all the bad things that MIGHT happen. If it happens, you'll have time to deal with it then.

 

[garrula lingua]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX
I have been paying CS for the last 15 yrs. and now my child turned 18 in March and will be graduating in May and my ex. is threatening to take me to court and get a modification for me to continue paying until she is done with college. The original divorce decree states that i pay until she is 18 and or graduates high school, can this type of modification be made or is she blowing smoke? THANKS

No, she cannot get a modification of the child support to order you to pay child support beyond the age of 18 or graduation from high school (or marriage or joining the military). See Texas Family Code, section 154.006 re termination of duty of support.
Such a modification cannot be forced on anyone in Texas. The Court can order you to pay child support with no stated termination date, if the child is disabled; that does not appear to be your circumstance).
Some parents agree to child support continuation through college in the original divorce decree - their situation is different than yours.

You are free to, voluntarily, help your child with college bills, as well as provide medical insurance (you are no longer under a court order to provide medical insurance, but it would be monstrous to drop it - maybe your ex will now pay you 50% of the cost of medical ins for your child).By the time any modification request of ex-wife is heard in District Court, your child will have graduated high school & be 18. A Tx court can only order 'retro' modification to the day of service or first appearance.

BTW, hopefully, this doesn't apply to you, but:
if there is any unpaid child support (arrears), upon termination of cs, in Tx, your ex has two years from the date of termination of cs to file a contempt action against you (has six months jail as potential penalty), and
she has ten years to ask the court to issue a Judgment for the unpaid cs.

 

[Proserpina]

No, she cannot get a modification of the child support to order you to pay child support beyond the age of 18 or graduation from high school (or marriage or joining the military). See Texas Family Code, section 154.006 re termination of duty of support.
Such a modification cannot be forced on anyone in Texas. The Court can order you to pay child support with no stated termination date, if the child is disabled; that does not appear to be your circumstance).
Some parents agree to child support continuation through college in the original divorce decree - their situation is different than yours.

You are free to, voluntarily, help your child with college bills, as well as provide medical insurance (you are no longer under a court order to provide medical insurance, but it would be monstrous to drop it - maybe your ex will now pay you 50% of the cost of medical ins for your child).By the time any modification request of ex-wife is heard in District Court, your child will have graduated high school & be 18. A Tx court can only order 'retro' modification to the day of service or first appearance.

BTW, hopefully, this doesn't apply to you, but:
if there is any unpaid child support (arrears), upon termination of cs, in Tx, your ex has two years from the date of termination of cs to file a contempt action against you (has six months jail as potential penalty), and
she has ten years to ask the court to issue a Judgment for the unpaid cs.

I sit corrected

 

[garrula lingua]

Proser: That is rare; you are always correct.

Texas' laws are different; also, you may be correct, as many Judges in Tx create their own law.

I think because there are so few dedicated courts in Tx, and a District Court Judge hears a capital murder case, followed by a personal injury case, followed by a contract suit, then a family law case, they frequently shoot from the hip.

OP: before you go "neener, neener" to your ex, be sure you have paid all arrears. Also, your child needs your help (not your ex, your child).