Remember These Two Things About Child Support

When parents get divorced their kids can easily be caught in the middle. This happens more often than most people would like to think, and the motives behind entrenching your children in your legal battles vary from couple to couple. Sometimes one parent or the other “uses” the kids to get information about the other parent, or asks the children to relay messages between the parties. There are also instances where kids find themselves involved in their parents’ divorce case when issues of visitation arise. It is not uncommon for parents to try and resolve scheduling issues by having their kids ask for a change in the routine, or by simply not meeting the other parent at the designated time and location for child exchange.

This area of divorce can become fuzzy; because many parents believe child support and custody or visitation go hand in hand. However, the two concepts are separate and distinct and the line between them should not be blurred by taking action not approved by the Court. Two things to keep in mind in this regard include:

• Child support must be paid, regardless of whether your ex is allowing you to exercise scheduled visitation.
• Visitation must be allowed, regardless of whether your ex is paying the Court ordered child support payments.

In both situations, whether you are being denied visitation or have not received your child support payment, the remedy is to file a motion seeking to hold your ex in contempt for failing to comply with the terms of the final decree. It can be tempting to skip out on visitation if you have not received a child support payment, and it is just as easy to fail to make the payment if you are being denied visitation but both of these actions goes against the letter of the law. For help sorting out child support and visitation issues, call our office. Our goal is to keep your kids happy and healthy, while pursuing all of your legal remedies. We work for what is in your children’s best interest, as well as for solutions that meet your needs.
For more information about divorce, contact our office.

Let us put our experience to work for you. Call The Sampair Group in Phoenix and the West Valley today to schedule your appointment.