| My ex-spouse has not been paying child support as was ordered by our Decree of Divorce, what can I do about it? |
Response: You can contact the Office of the Attorney General of the State of Texas and request their assistance in pursuing your claim for child support arrearages or a local legal aid office if one is located near you. If you choose to not pursue your possible claim with either of these choices and want to hire a private attorney who may pursue the claim on your behalf you are legally entitled to do so. A private attorney would, in most instances, be able to provide you and your case more personalized attention and be more available for personal consultations and contacts than either of the above-named sources. Also, you should be aware that the Office of the Attorney General of Texas does not actually represent you in your case but represents the interests of the State of Texas. You may even wish to hire a private attorney in cases in which the Office of the Attorney General is or will be involved. The 2 most used methods for pursuing such claims are by a Motion for Enforcement by Contempt or a Motion to Reduce Child Support Arrearages to a Money Judgment.
| My case involves Children Protective Services (CPS), what are my rights? |
Response: That would, of course, depend on the circumstances of your case. Most matters in which CPS is involved may be handled by following the instructions given to you to attend certain classes involving such issues as family violence, good parenting and drug and/or alcohol abuse. However, if termination of your parental rights are involved you should consult with an attorney immediately. You have such a right and should exercise that right.
| My ex-spouse has not visited with our child for quite a period of time, do I still have to have my child ready for the court-ordered visits on each occasion? |
Response: Yes, you do. In spite of the lack of your ex-spouse’s exercising their possession rights to visit with your child, those rights still exist unless or until a subsequent court order changes those rights. Visitation and possession are rights and not duties, in other words, a failure or refusal to visit does not open the door for you to not follow the duties that you are ordered to exercise. If you feel that other arrangements would be in the best interest of your child then you are required to obtain a court order providing for such changes in order for them to be legally enforceable.
| My ex-spouse was ordered to pay child support, but has not done so as ordered to do, can I deny visitation until they comply with the court’s child support order? |
Response: No. A failure or refusal by someone to pay their court ordered child support payments does not give a person the right to infringe on the court ordered possession rights of the offending party. The two issues are not dependant on one another.
| If I am making less income now than when I was ordered to pay child support in the past, what do I need to do to get my child support payments reduced? |
Response: You will need to get a modification of the previous court order that states what amount of child support you must now pay. There are various factors to be considered first, however. First of all, you cannot be deliberately underemployed or unemployed. In other words, if you have had a job at which you were paid $23.00 per hour at the time of the last court order for child support and you are now earning $10.00 per hour on a different job, it is your burden to prove that this substantial change in circumstances is not the result of you deliberately being underemployed. If you are not employed at present, it would also be your burden to prove that you are unemployed through no fault of your own.