Child Support

It was recently reported that former San Diego Chargers cornerback Antonio Cromartie was $25,000 behind on child support obligations.  One of the mothers of Cromartie’s children filed a document with the court that prevented him from selling any property without first being current on his child support.  Cromartie has since caught up on his obligations after being traded to the New York Jets and receiving a $500,000 advance on his contract.

It is now more expensive than ever to raise a child.  The cost of raising a child from birth to the age of 18 is estimated to range from $180,000-$250,000.  As a child gets older, the expenses rise.  Older children are often involved in extra-curricular activities like music, dance, or sports.  If parents wish to pay for a child’s college education, this can easily add another $50,000 in expenses. Continue Reading

Hard financial times are still troubling many parents in California who have been laid off from their jobs.  The Associated Press reports in the Los Angeles Times that nationally, new jobless claims have recently risen higher than expected, although California has fortunately seen some decreases.  For many of these parents who owe child support, the question is, when unemployment benefits end, will that parent be excused from paying the support until a new job is found?  On the other hand, if the paying parent is lucky enough to be in a better financial position than when the child support was first ordered, will that parent automatically pay more now to support his or her child?  The short answer in either case is no, and will continue to be no, unless and until one of the parent’s gets the child support order modified in family court.  Continue Reading

If a California family court order is disobeyed, there are many different ways to compel compliance, but can a person be jailed if, for example, child support isn’t paid?  Through the court’s “contempt power,” many family court orders that have been violated can potentially be punished with jail time.  On the other hand, the U.S. and California constitutions protect people from being put in jail just for having unpaid debts.  In the case of spousal support (alimony) or child support, even though money is owed, the payments are not seen as “debts” because they arise from legal obligations created when you have children or get married, which is why jail can be imposed for willfully violating the court order.  Continue Reading