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Non-custodial parent intentionally staying under-employed - Advice needed

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lilbabyowl32

New member
Mother and 5 children in New York
Child Support Decree from Texas
Father in Florida

I currently live in New York state, my ex-husband is in Florida, our divorce decree and child support was in Texas.

My ex-husband owned a business that went from earning him a stable income and even having employees to him just pulling money out of it. During this time he displayed unstable behavior even having had to be admitted to a mental health facility against his will. After he was released, he continued to pull money from the business but not in fact "run" the business. This is my perception along with information he shared and previous employees eye-witness accounts including his at the time girlfriend. Eventually there was no more business/money and he left Texas and moved in with his brother in Florida with no job. The children and I went without support for most of 2018 and in 2017 it was always less frequent and less than the ordered amount even when the business was still operating and he had income. He then began working for a company called Fancyhands where you complete tasks for a certain amount of money (typically less than minimum wage). He began to pay child support with somewhat more regularity but obviously less the ordered amount.

He is supposed to pay 302.80 a week (the older child dropped off he says because turned 18 so this is for the other 4), currently pays around 300 every few weeks, however nothing now for over a month as he said he was having dental issues and needed to pay that instead. He has an engineering degree and owned his own business for many years. He is actually quite employable but my mom and I believe he is purposely taking on this lower paying type of job because 1. they can't garnish wages as it's a consultant time of position and 2. he can claim that he makes less though he never filed for a modification so his arrears are around 33K. I could file for enforcement but if what he says is true that he is paying what he can afford, should I even bother? As well will they recognize his earning potential and enforce that he find better employment instead of purposefully staying under-employed?
 


LdiJ

Senior Member
Mother and 5 children in New York
Child Support Decree from Texas
Father in Florida

I currently live in New York state, my ex-husband is in Florida, our divorce decree and child support was in Texas.

My ex-husband owned a business that went from earning him a stable income and even having employees to him just pulling money out of it. During this time he displayed unstable behavior even having had to be admitted to a mental health facility against his will. After he was released, he continued to pull money from the business but not in fact "run" the business. This is my perception along with information he shared and previous employees eye-witness accounts including his at the time girlfriend. Eventually there was no more business/money and he left Texas and moved in with his brother in Florida with no job. The children and I went without support for most of 2018 and in 2017 it was always less frequent and less than the ordered amount even when the business was still operating and he had income. He then began working for a company called Fancyhands where you complete tasks for a certain amount of money (typically less than minimum wage). He began to pay child support with somewhat more regularity but obviously less the ordered amount.

He is supposed to pay 302.80 a week (the older child dropped off he says because turned 18 so this is for the other 4), currently pays around 300 every few weeks, however nothing now for over a month as he said he was having dental issues and needed to pay that instead. He has an engineering degree and owned his own business for many years. He is actually quite employable but my mom and I believe he is purposely taking on this lower paying type of job because 1. they can't garnish wages as it's a consultant time of position and 2. he can claim that he makes less though he never filed for a modification so his arrears are around 33K. I could file for enforcement but if what he says is true that he is paying what he can afford, should I even bother? As well will they recognize his earning potential and enforce that he find better employment instead of purposefully staying under-employed?
They cannot force him to get a better job. All they can really do is make his life pretty difficult by yanking his driver's license, passport, professional licenses, levy his bank account, levy his tax refunds (should he have any) etc.

You should also be aware that children don't just "drop off" child support. So if that 302.80 is a reduced amount from the original court order, without the court actually recalculating the child support, he is incorrect.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
You should also be aware that children don't just "drop off" child support. So if that 302.80 is a reduced amount from the original court order, without the court actually recalculating the child support, he is incorrect.
I don't disagree, except for the caveat that the order may be worded in such a way that it's allowed. The OP should read her order carefully to see if that's the case.
 

not2cleverRed

Obvious Observer
I don't disagree, except for the caveat that the order may be worded in such a way that it's allowed. The OP should read her order carefully to see if that's the case.
Additionally, Dad should be told to pound sand if the child is still in high school.

And he should be told that he is lucky the court order is out of Texas, not New York, since in NY it can go until age 21.
 

Junction

Junior Member
NY law does not apply in this case. You could have just as well explained the child support laws of New Zealand, France or Washington, all of which are irrelevant. I don't usually see those kinds of post here at this site.
 

PayrollHRGuy

Senior Member
NY law does not apply in this case. You could have just as well explained the child support laws of New Zealand, France or Washington, all of which are irrelevant. I don't usually see those kinds of post here at this site.
I'm sure ot2clever is aware. The point being it could be worse.
 

stealth2

Under the Radar Member
NY law does not apply in this case. You could have just as well explained the child support laws of New Zealand, France or Washington, all of which are irrelevant. I don't usually see those kinds of post here at this site.
Perhaps you could change your UserID, Captain Obvious. ;)
 

Griggsarleen

New member
To change the amount you need to get a court order, he can't do that himself and no one can force him to get a better job. He may say that he is applying somewhere else and screws up the interview.
 

Junction

Junior Member
My point is if a "non-regular" were to make the same statement, they would be jumped on for stating what's irrelevant. Does anyone disagree?
 

not2cleverRed

Obvious Observer
Believe it or not, all senior members were at one time "non-regular".

You, however, are "irregular" in your personal attack on me.

My post was relevant. OP and the children reside in NY. She should get child support transferred to the state she is in, NY, and go through CSEB.

Doing so will not change when child support for a particular child ends: while the age of emancipation is 18 in Texas, if they are still full time high school students, that emancipation will be shifted until their high school graduation. Transferring jurisdiction to NY will not change that.

However, a change of jurisdiction to NY will certainly going to court easier than going to TX, and it would be worth it for OP to crunch the numbers and see if using a NY child support calculator would be favorable. It definitely would be worth addressing before Dad tries domesticating the order to FL.
 

LdiJ

Senior Member
My point is if a "non-regular" were to make the same statement, they would be jumped on for stating what's irrelevant. Does anyone disagree?
I do wholeheartedly disagree with you. NY is one of the states involved and the point was being made that it could be worse. None of use would has dissed anyone for making that statement due to its context. You got the comments you got because you dissed the poster without recognizing the context of her statements.
 

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