Every divorced parent has to pay some or the other amount for child support decided by the court. The court always considers various aspects before determining child support for each parent. However, if a parent fails to give the assigned amount or misses a payment for child support, they will face repercussions.
The rules set by the law are strict for child support. So that people do not get out of paying child support for their children, leaving one parent with the entire financial burden. Especially in cases where the child custody is with one parent, there are high chances that the other parent might not pay child support.
If you are going through a similar situation, get help from a gig harbor child support attorney. A child support lawyer will help in case of child support arrears and let you know all your rights.
Nevertheless, you must know everything about child support arrears for future references. So you can take the necessary action if you are in a similar situation.
What do you mean by child support arrears?
Child support arrears mean the unpaid or due payment of child support. For example, if a parent is assigned a certain amount for child support and stops paying it in between, the amount piles up. It becomes child support arrears if it is not cleared for a while.
However, a child support arrears is only valid if the parent has an official court statement for the other parent for paying child support. If the court does not assign the parent any child support, the other parent cannot claim them for child support arrear.
There are several situations where child support may or may not be applied automatically. For example, when two people divorce, the court takes care of the child support distributed relatively among both parents. However, if a couple is separated, the parent taking care of the children may seek an official order from the court for child support from the other parent.
Way to gain child support arrears
If the other parent refuses to pay the pending or current child support, you can seek help from the child support agency in your state. Every state has an appointed child-support agency that is supported by the law. This agency helps in various big and small matters like child support arrears, unmarried parents who have children, etc.