OnceUponATime
Member
Virginia
Mother & Father have split custody of 2 kids. Custody agreed and filed in Juvenile Court, and support agreed and filed in Circuit Court. An issue has come up regarding an expensive extracurricular activity, $1600/year for a swim program, and parents do not agree.
To try and make a long story short, here is a synopsis of events:
2002-2005 Mother has primary of son & daughter. Support order states primary parent pays for all sports/activities.
Nov 06 – Agreed custody change for son from mother to father. Parents (no attorneys) prepare 1 page document changing primary custody to father, support will be calculated on guidelines, and swim expenses split 50/50. Document not notarized, filed in Juvenile Court.
Apr 07 – Long delay due to mother’s illness, Juvenile Court granted primary custody of son to father, by putting an “Approved” stamp, date and signature on a cover page of the orginial 1-page document. Judge said support for this case was handled in Circuit court, so could not rule on support.
May 07 – Mom & Dad continue fighting over support, how its calculated, and if father should get reimbursed for mother receiving continued support for son since Nov 06.
Jun 07 - Mom & Dad agree on support amount, no retroactive support, no mention of swim expenses. Support modification order is filed and approved in Circuit Court.
Mom is now saying father should pay half of swim expenses, referring to original signed document of a year ago. Father says current support order makes no mention of swim, and previous order states primary parent pays for all sports/activities, and that is the legally binding document.
Questions:
1. If mother were to file a motion regarding the swim expenses, would it be the Circuit Court?
2. Assuming Circuit Court, would the court honor an unnotarized document that was signed prior to the current support order, but was filed in Juvenile Court for custody purposes?
I know this is confusing but I appreciate any comments or advice, thank you in advance.
Mother & Father have split custody of 2 kids. Custody agreed and filed in Juvenile Court, and support agreed and filed in Circuit Court. An issue has come up regarding an expensive extracurricular activity, $1600/year for a swim program, and parents do not agree.
To try and make a long story short, here is a synopsis of events:
2002-2005 Mother has primary of son & daughter. Support order states primary parent pays for all sports/activities.
Nov 06 – Agreed custody change for son from mother to father. Parents (no attorneys) prepare 1 page document changing primary custody to father, support will be calculated on guidelines, and swim expenses split 50/50. Document not notarized, filed in Juvenile Court.
Apr 07 – Long delay due to mother’s illness, Juvenile Court granted primary custody of son to father, by putting an “Approved” stamp, date and signature on a cover page of the orginial 1-page document. Judge said support for this case was handled in Circuit court, so could not rule on support.
May 07 – Mom & Dad continue fighting over support, how its calculated, and if father should get reimbursed for mother receiving continued support for son since Nov 06.
Jun 07 - Mom & Dad agree on support amount, no retroactive support, no mention of swim expenses. Support modification order is filed and approved in Circuit Court.
Mom is now saying father should pay half of swim expenses, referring to original signed document of a year ago. Father says current support order makes no mention of swim, and previous order states primary parent pays for all sports/activities, and that is the legally binding document.
Questions:
1. If mother were to file a motion regarding the swim expenses, would it be the Circuit Court?
2. Assuming Circuit Court, would the court honor an unnotarized document that was signed prior to the current support order, but was filed in Juvenile Court for custody purposes?
I know this is confusing but I appreciate any comments or advice, thank you in advance.
