Divorce can bring along a lot of financial considerations for Maryland spouses who decide to end a marriage. These considerations run the gamut from evolving tax issues to who gets child custody and which parent might need to pay child support. It is typically important that both the custodial and noncustodial parent understand how the law views ordered child support payments after divorce.
Child support obligations are considered vital to ensure that children are being provided for financially. While divorce can often bring a lot of negative emotions, it can help to remember that child support is intended to ensure that children’s lives continue as smoothly as possible in what can often be a very difficult time for them. Whenever a parent’s child support requirements become too onerous, though, it is possible to request that a family law judge revise the payments accordingly. This will typically require that a noncustodial parent show evidence indicating why the payments should be adjusted.
One report indicates that a man in Ohio failed to get such a court-ordered modification before he failed to meet his support obligations. Authorities allege that the man owed nearly $80,000 for his four children at the time he was indicted in 2011. That amount had apparently risen to nearly $100,000 by the time he pleaded guilty for this failure to pay.
The judge in the case went so far as to order the man to avoid having any more children while he was delinquent in providing for the four children he already has. This unique sentencing twist is controversial in that it raises questions on whether the government should even be trying to dictate how many children a citizen can have. Regardless, however, Maryland parents who have been ordered to pay child support when another parent has been granted primary child custody may wish to look into filing for a court-approved support modification in order to avoid any criminal proceedings like those in this particular case.
Source: Time, “Judge Orders Man Owing K in Child Support To Stop Having Kids,” Erica Ho, Jan. 28, 2013