• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

By Root 874 0

and a few months later the court got a phone call from a relative saying he'd been killed in a bar fight, so authorities stopped looking for him. Twenty-seven years later, his ex-wife called the sheriff and said the deadbeat dad was alive and living in South Carolina-and she was right. The four grand was now about $30,000 in arrearages. His current (and fourth) wife filed divorce papers immediately. And if that dad thinks he's getting out of the support obligation because he's in jail, he's got another thing coming-being incarcerated doesn't automatically end child support, although the amount may be adjusted to take reduced earnings into account.

Most states report nonpayment to the credit bureaus, affecting your credit rating. All report to the federal "new hire database," which means that if you try to change jobs, your prospective new employer can find out that you are behind in your child support. You can have your passport denied and your tax refunds intercepted. Some states list nonpaying parents on public Web pages. And child support obligations don't go away, either-in most states there's no limit on how many years can pass between the order and collection of the support payments. Even if you file for bankruptcy, you can't wipe out your obligation to support your children.

How Long Support Lasts

Generally, parents' support obligations end when their youngest child becomes an adult in the eyes of the law-usually at 18, but sometimes older depending on the state. However, some states require parents to continue paying child support as long as the child is a full-time student in high school, college, or trade school, up to a certain age. And some pay even longer-see "College Expenses," below.

Certain events end your child support obligation no matter what else is going on in your child's life or yours. You are no longer obligated to pay support if your child:

• becomes emancipated, meaning that before the legal age of adulthood in your state, the child goes to court and is declared an "emancipated minor"-someone with the same rights as a legal adult

• joins the military, or

• gets married.

Get insurance. You have an obligation to support your kids until they are adults, but what if something happens to you in the meantime? You should have a disability insurance policy that replaces your income if you become unable to work (especially if you are self-employed). You should also have life insurance that names your children as the beneficiaries and names someone to manage the policy proceeds for your kids until they are adults. Your former spouse would be the natural choice, but if you don't feel comfortable with that, at least try to choose someone who'll be able to get along with your ex. There's useful information about buying insurance to protect your family in Parent Savvy: Straight Answers to Your Family's Financial, Legal & Practical Questions, by Nihara Choudhri (Nolo).

Terminating Parental Rights to Terminate Support: Not a Popular Idea

The courts and legislatures take child support responsibilities very seriously. In an Ohio case, a divorced father argued that he shouldn't have to pay past-due child support after he allowed his ex-wife's new husband to adopt his child. Because his rights were terminated by the adoption, the father said, he no longer had any obligation to support the child. The judge agreed that the father no longer had an ongoing support obligation, but wouldn't let him off the hook for past-due payments.

In another case, the divorcing parents agreed that the husband would relinquish parental rights in exchange for not having to pay child support. The divorce court allowed the agreement, but the appeals court said no after the state child support enforcement agency intervened. The court said that the termination of the father's rights was not in the child's best interest, no matter what the parents agreed. As a matter of public policy, courts want kids to have two parents who are responsible for their welfare, if at all possible.

And in a New York case, a mother attempted to facilitate