Child support is crucial in meeting a child’s needs after a divorce. The California Child Support Services department can enforce child support orders. It also handles cases of parents who delay paying child support. Your co-parent may fall into this category.
If this is your situation, here is what you should do:
Find out more about the problem
Your co-parent may experience a change in their life that makes it difficult for them to pay the ordered amount on the set date. This may be due to the loss of income, a change in career or a new responsibility in their life, such as marriage or the birth of a new child. You cannot relieve them of their obligation, but if they’re attempting to make things right, you can work with them.
Ask for help enforcing the support order
If your co-parent can’t or won’t pay child support and is not planning to request a modification, you can go back to court. Taking your co-parent back to court may not be what you expected, but if circumstances call for it, consider doing so.
The court can punish your co-parent for their refusal to pay by adding interest to what they owe, suspending their driver’s license, putting liens on their property, suspending their professional licenses, taking their tax returns and even holding them in contempt of court.
Child support payments are crucial because they ensure a child has everything they need. If your co-parent fails to observe a child support order, you should get legal guidance to protect your child’s rights.