When financial and life situations change, child support orders may be modified to reflect the new circumstances. There are a couple of approaches to modifying an existing child support order. You can do so either through reaching agreement with the other parent or convincing a New Jersey judge to make the change. A family law attorney with experience handling child support modification requests can provide guidance in either case, and legal representation will be especially valuable if the other parent disputes the change request.
WHEN CAN I MODIFY CHILD SUPPORT IN NEW JERSEY?
Either parent can ask for a modification to child support—both payors and payees. Whether you can modify the amount of child support for your particular case depends on your reason for wanting the change. Your circumstances or those of the other parent or your child must have changed substantially and not just on a temporary basis for a modification to be approved.
Here are examples of situations the court may see as significant enough to consider modification:
- Child custody arrangements have changed
- The number of overnights a child spends with each parent has changed
- The child’s needs have changed significantly
- A parent or child has a serious illness or has become disabled since the previous order
- A parent’s income has greatly increased or decreased, such as through a higher-paying job or job loss
- Daycare costs have increased, decreased, or are no longer a factor
- A parent has lost their home
- Health insurance premium payments for the child have increased or decreased.
There may be additional grounds not discussed here for pursuing modification. Your attorney can help you understand if your reason is substantial enough to change the order. As far as timing, you can ask for a modification at any time after the prior support order was put in place. But the reason you want the change cannot have existed at the time of the previous order.
STEPS TO MODIFYING A CHILD SUPPORT ORDER
You can either reach an agreement to change payments or take your case to court.
NEGOTIATING A CHILD SUPPORT MODIFICATION
The most ideal way to modify a support order is to get agreement from the other parent. If you can negotiate a modified support agreement between yourselves, you can have the judge review and approve the updated support amount and issue a new order. Sometimes, due to acrimony between parties, direct negotiations may not be a good idea, but your lawyers may be able to step in and move negotiations forward. If it is at all possible to reach consensus rather than tussling it out in court, you can save yourself time, money, and stress.
PETITIONING THE COURT FOR A CHANGE TO CHILD SUPPORT
When negotiating a different child support amount is not successful, or is not even possible, you will need to go before the court and convince the judge why you need a modification. To start the process, you will file a motion with the court that includes the existing child support order and past and updated case information statements, as well as any other documentation that illustrates the significant change in circumstances.
If the court agrees that the changed circumstances warrant a revisit of support payments, the other parent will also have to provide up-to-date financial data. You will go to a hearing with the judge, where you will both make your arguments as to why the modification request should or shouldn’t be approved.
Once the court considers your evidence and arguments, and all the necessary factors in making support determinations, as they did in making the previous support order, they will then approve or deny the change request.
While you do not have to retain a lawyer to take your case before the court, you stand a much better chance of a positive outcome with a party by your side who is well-versed in the legal procedures and complexities of child support and payment modifications. And if the other parent is disputing your request in court to decrease or increase support payments, they may very well have their own attorney by their side.
MODIFYING A CHILD SUPPORT ORDER IF CUSTODIAL PARENT IS MISUSING FUNDS
Sometimes, paying parents suspect receiving parents of using support for themselves, and not for the benefit of their children. This can be difficult to prove because recipient parents do not have to provide an accounting of how they spend support dollars. However, if you honestly believe that misuse of child support is taking place, your attorney can investigate. If your suspicions are correct, there may be a possibility of having payments renegotiated and the order modified.
When you work with our firm, we will do everything in our legal power to ensure fairness to you and protect your child’s interests.
TURN TO OUR SKILLFUL LAW FIRM FOR HELP IN MODIFYING A NEW JERSEY CHILD SUPPORT ORDER
Like most parents, you probably want what is best for your child and are willing to provide the financial support necessary to ensure their standard of living remains close to what it was when your family was intact. Sometimes, though, changing financial situations or other changes in circumstances can warrant pursuing a modification in how much support you should be expected to pay or to receive. Perhaps you have taken a significant pay cut, or the other parent has gotten a big promotion along with a large boost in salary. If so, it may be time to recalculate the financial obligation you both owe to your children.
At [MFR] Men’s & Fathers’ Rights Divorce Lawyers in New Jersey, we will review the change in circumstances to determine if the court will consider it substantial and guide you through the support modification process. Or, if you are disputing a modification, we can help you defend the existing order.
To arrange a consult with an attorney, call our law firm at (201) 880-9770 or use our contact form.
