Not able to pay, what can be done?

[Gracie3787]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? Florida
I guess the easiest way to ask my question is to explain the circumstances first, and then pose my question. As some of you may know from my previous posts, my husband became disabled, filed for modification of order to pay arrears, but modification wasn't done because he had heart attack on morn of hearing. He has not reset a hearing date because he has been advised by DR.'s that the extreme stress of going to court pro se could cause another heart attack. We contacted the judge's office to find a list of pro bono attorneys, they do not have. Area legal aid does not handle CS cases. Here is the existing financial situations for my husband and his ex:
My husband: income-zero- has filed for SSDI, may take years to start.
My income: $564.00 mo. SSI, which will end as soon as husband recieves SSDI. We also recieve $182.00 mo. food stamps.
Medical expenses (don't have ins.)- as of Aug. 13, $420.00 mo.
Liabilities, other than arrears- $126,000.00 in medical bills
Assets- 35 yr old mobile home in my name, worth $1,500.00 (uninsured)
Furniture, etc. $1,000.00. (16 yr old car destroyed in accident 3 wks ago.)
My husband's ex:
income- total $5,000.00 mo. ($4,000.00 earned, $1,000.00 CS from her other 3 kids' fathers)
Medical expenses- (has ins. for self and her kids)- $50.00 mo. (from her financial affidavit)
Liabilities- None, all discharged in ch. 7 bankruptcy last year.
Assets- 1/2 owner of $120,000.00 home, 1999 Ford Escort, 1997 Honda Civic, 1997 Ford F-150.
My husband's children are are adults, so payment of arrears is to reimburse ex, not for child support for minor children.

My question,( whether modification is done or not,) considering the existing circumstances, what can court/CSE/ex legally and realistically do to my husband for not paying?

 

[Gracie3787]

Well, apparently I posted my question at the wrong time (a Fri. nite), so I'm adding this to bring it to the top of board. We really need some input on this situation. My husband and I are physically, financially, and emotionally exhausted from the events of the last several months (heart attack, 2 hurricanes, car accident, and financial problems).

The last arrears payment was made June 1, (out of his last unemployment check), the court, ex, and CSE are all aware of his disability, and nonpayment will not affect his grown children.

Considering all of the circumstances, we have been considering just letting things lay the way they are until his SSDI begins, it is finally time to put my husband's health first, but we don't want to bring on more problems.

So any insight into what could happen will be greatly appreciated.

 

[LdiJ]

Well, apparently I posted my question at the wrong time (a Fri. nite), so I'm adding this to bring it to the top of board. We really need some input on this situation. My husband and I are physically, financially, and emotionally exhausted from the events of the last several months (heart attack, 2 hurricanes, car accident, and financial problems).

The last arrears payment was made June 1, (out of his last unemployment check), the court, ex, and CSE are all aware of his disability, and nonpayment will not affect his grown children.

Considering all of the circumstances, we have been considering just letting things lay the way they are until his SSDI begins, it is finally time to put my husband's health first, but we don't want to bring on more problems.

So any insight into what could happen will be greatly appreciated.

I think it would not be much of a risk under the circumstances to just let things lie until his SSDI payments begin. Obviously there is no money to pay the arrearages in any case. I agree that at this point your husband's health needs to come first.

 

[Gracie3787]

Thank you, thank you, a hundred times thank you. This is the first time I have ever heard anyone (not only on this site, but anywhere) recognize the fact that a NCP is human and can have serious needs that should be given consideration.

Everyone, even Judges, have the attitude that if a NCP is paying support and owes arrears then he/she was, still is and always will be the scum of the earth, and therefore has no rights to any of those little luxeries of life such as food, shelter and God Forbid- desperately needed medical care.

Ex's and the courts need to stop cutting off their noses to spite their faces, common sense dictates that keeping the NCP healthy and working is the best way to insure that payments keep coming. Oh well, in this case they let their anger rule and now nobody is getting anything.

Anyway, thank you again.
Gracie

 

[Tommisupermomof]

I am from California. I am sorry to hear about your husband's plight. Unfortunately it only takes a few bad seeds to spoil things for the whole bunch. You are right that many judges see ncp's in a very negative light. I have a daughter that is 4 yrs old (5 in Dec.) that has NEVER been supported by her father. We go to court next month because he is trying to get his driver's license back. (In CA they take your license for unpaid support!) He is now reqesting a "repayment plan." He was injured on the job almost a year ago and now he wants his child support reduced because he is receiving some money from the state compensation fund. It is people like that who give ncp's a bad name. Fortunately, I know many good ncp's, so I realize that they are not all that way. I would say take care of your husband and yourself. The ex does deserve to collect the past due support, after all the money has already been spent on the children, but it does sound like she is just going to have to be patientand and wait for things to settle down for your husband. My joke is that my daughter is potty trained and I am still trying to collect diaper money. Hopefully you will be able to get this obligation met quickly and get this woman out of your lives for good. Best of luck!

 

[prettyredhead]

"What can they do if he cant pay>?" WTF?>
Well, in a perfect world, they could take a blowtorch to his testicles, but since that is "barbaric" then I guess he could only face some jail time.
You dont need health insurance, really. The kids come first. I live without health insurance. If I get sick then I go into debt. Better not get sick, eh?
You can find the means to pay child support. Eat one less Krispy Kreme or one less car. Find a way, and pay it. The kids dont have to suffer because their adult parents decided to alter their lives. They deserve the same standard as they would have had if the parents could have refrained from breaking up the family. Its always, memememe never my kids my kids my kids.
There is no I in team, but there is a me.

 

[nextwife]

The kids dont have to suffer because their adult parents decided to alter their lives. They deserve the same standard as they would have had if the parents could have refrained from breaking up the family.

Believe it or not, but if the family had NOT broken up, and dad had experienced that massive heart attack, his spouse - the kid's mom - would have needed to assume all the responsibilty for providing for the kids beyond SS disabilty. No one should go into parenting presuming that they may never have to step up to the plate if the other parent should become disabled or die to provide for them.

S**t happens in real life - parents DO get disabled, and in those families of disabled parents, the kids DO end up needing to see some changes in lifestyle. It's BS to believe that children of divorce should be fully insulated from seeing the changes in their life if Dad is very ill that children of intact families DO experience. If the family HAD remained together, you don't think they would have seen a need for some lifestyle changes if Dad had a major heart attack? I was the child of parent who became severely disabled when I was young. Brain tumor, partial paralysis and aphasia. And the answer is YES, life does change if the marraige remains intact. And MOM of kiddos then steps up and helps make up for what dad can't provide anymore if she wishes to have her kiddos less financially impacted by dad's illness.

 

[LdiJ]

"What can they do if he cant pay>?" WTF?>
Well, in a perfect world, they could take a blowtorch to his testicles, but since that is "barbaric" then I guess he could only face some jail time.
You dont need health insurance, really. The kids come first. I live without health insurance. If I get sick then I go into debt. Better not get sick, eh?
You can find the means to pay child support. Eat one less Krispy Kreme or one less car. Find a way, and pay it. The kids dont have to suffer because their adult parents decided to alter their lives. They deserve the same standard as they would have had if the parents could have refrained from breaking up the family. Its always, memememe never my kids my kids my kids.
There is no I in team, but there is a me.

Are you aware that the children are full fledged adults and the support that is being paid is arrearages?

Did you pay attention to the fact that the father had a massive heart attack while driving their ONLY car, which was subsequently totalled?

Did you pay attention to the fact that they currently have only about 500.00 a month in income and over 100,000 of medical debt?

If you are going to respond to a poster, make sure that you read their story. If you read her story, then your response is more than a bit disappointing.

 

[Smarty Panties]

You have to forgive the redhead. She's crazy.

 

[Gracie3787]

Another Question

Thank you for replies, and thanks LdiJ for reminding prettyredhead to fully read posts before responding.

I have another question that I hope someone knows the answer to:

When my husband finally recieves SSDI he will get a lump sum going back to date disability began.

There is a court order to pay $50.00 per week arrears payments (order is seperate from former CS order and was issued pursuant to ex/cse filing petition for payment of arrears)

His monthly SSDI will be $150.00 month below poverty level, and I will lose my SSI, and our FS will decrease.

My questions are:

Is there a set percentage that can be taken from lump sum SSDI payment?

Can they take only the missed court ordered payments, or can they take entire amount of arrears.

Is SSDI subject to garnishment for arrears after all kids are over 18?

I'm sorry that I'm such a pain in the *** with all my questions, but I have found that this is a good place to get lots of help and opinions.
Thanks

 

[LdiJ]

Thank you for replies, and thanks LdiJ for reminding prettyredhead to fully read posts before responding.

I have another question that I hope someone knows the answer to:

When my husband finally recieves SSDI he will get a lump sum going back to date disability began.

There is a court order to pay $50.00 per week arrears payments (order is seperate from former CS order and was issued pursuant to ex/cse filing petition for payment of arrears)

His monthly SSDI will be $150.00 month below poverty level, and I will lose my SSI, and our FS will decrease.

My questions are:

Is there a set percentage that can be taken from lump sum SSDI payment?

Can they take only the missed court ordered payments, or can they take entire amount of arrears.

Is SSDI subject to garnishment for arrears after all kids are over 18?

I'm sorry that I'm such a pain in the *** with all my questions, but I have found that this is a good place to get lots of help and opinions.
Thanks

According to what I just read on the SSA website, SSI and SSDI benefits cannot be garnished. Therefore I would assume that lump sum payments wouldn't be any different.

It also said that the monies were still protected even if already paid....they couldn't be garnished from a bank account (as long as the only money in the account was from SS payments). Regular social security payments can be garnished for child support...but nothing on the website addresses arrearages.

Obviously if he is going to be below poverty level then they can't justify continuing to take 50.00 a week....you have got to get that changed.

You also should be eligible for Medicaid. If you file for that quickly it would cover medical bills for three months prior to the date of filing.

 

[navy_kids]

sorry gracie

1st -- gracie glad to hear you survived Frances, too. Looks like big Ivan is going west (thank God). We escaped again with minor damages!!


2nd -- redhead shut the f*ck up already. Like others have said you had no clue whats going on with gracie.
You really should crawl back in your hole.

 

[carofl93]

Gracie,
Where in FL are you? We are in the Panhandle and had a wonderful attorney who worked with us on a payment basis. He knew we didn't have the cash up front for the retainer and also knew that my hubby was paying over $800 a month on CS. It took us a while, but we made small monthly payments and he was satisfied. Perhaps he could help you out as well if you are in this area.
By the way...ignore what the so called "pretty" redhead says. From what I have seen on these boards, she comes in to start troubles for those who have more than enough to deal with.
I hope your hubby recovers well and that he is able to get his SSI with little to no problems. I do feel badly that the kids aren't getting their support, but you cannot get blood from a rock....and my SD isn't getting her support only due to the fact that her mom is a deadbeat loser so I totally understand your situation.
Carol

 

[Gracie3787]

Thanks for replies

Thanks for replies.

Up until a few months ago I didn't have the use of a computer so all of my legal research in the last 3 years has been done the old fashioed way- by going to the law library and reading books. I've learned alot about Florida Statutes, but I just couldn't make sense of the U.S. Code books.
Well today I found an excellant website for the U.S. Codes:
www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode

According to what I read, if a CS case falls under IV-D of the Social Security Act (Title 42) everything from taxes to SSDI is garnishable for CS. Unfortunately I couldn't find anything that refers to arrears for adult kids.

I hope this link helps someone.

Carofl93, Take care, I hope Ivan doesn't do any damage where you live. I am in south central Fl, so all we are getting is clouds and a little rain.

 

[mountainman2008]

I think it would not be much of a risk under the circumstances to just let things lie until his SSDI payments begin. Obviously there is no money to pay the arrearages in any case. I agree that at this point your husband's health needs to come first.

SSDI,at least in georgia,doesn't appear to stop anything.My kids are grown now.The mother has been banned from food stamps,welfare,and housing for life for fraud already.She has collected ssi or ssdi for years,along with a seperate check for the children.She threw the children out,numerous times.CSR knows this/Once,she even signed a notarised statement terminating her rights.Another,DFCS took them and gave them to me for abuse.

This has happened numerous times in the last decade.I get a call,middle of the night,mom has thrown them out.They come live with me,months,sometimes years at a time.I tell CSR,they instruct me not to pay until court.Without fail,about a week before court,mom suddenly reestablishes contact,tells kids if they don't come live with her,she is going to prison.Court comes,they chunk another 6 months or year on the arrears....then,within a week,she throws the kids out again.I was declared totally disabled,and began recieving SSDI 2 years ago in May,after a routine blood test showed cancer.

CSR KNOWS I am on SSDI,I have letters from them acknowledging that the children have been back and forth and lived with me many times.Hell,SSA KNOWS the children lived with me when she was getting ssdi checks for the kids care,they began to investigate,sure enough,Mom comes crying with the "I'm going to prison" bit.

Point is,They KNOW all of this,but on Feb. 13,although the kids are gone,although they know I am on SSDI,although they know I was never given credit for the children living with me.They know my total income is 780 month.They know my youngest,17 1/2,gets the ssdi check directly in her name,as she has been on her own for well over a year.

Still,they want 6,000 back child support,200 CURRENT child support,insurance for the child(she has medicaid) and they are requesting I be incarcerated until I can expunge myself.My own child is going to court to testify that she has lived with me more than her mother for the last 10 years.

They KNOW,they just don't care.they are blind bureaucrats,who in my case,not only haven't helped,but have hurt the children.My god,the 10s of thousands of dollars I could have spent on MY CHILDREN,instead of having to hand it over to mom,a woman married to a convicted drug dealer,already convicted of fraud.yet,all she does is pick up the phone and presto,all the hounds of hell unleashed.That agency serves no good purpose.Since I am not a millionaire and cannot afford a lawyer every time she threw the kids out.This deaf,dumb,and blind bureacracy simply rolls over you.NEVER think CSR is about the childrens welfare,they are a useless agency that should be abolished.As far as I am concerned,they aid and abet theft.they are a completely destructive organization,they certainly hurt the kids they KNEW I was raising