My husband’s ex-wife has an attorney and we do not. They have a hearing on June 29th to set child support by the guidelines. My husband recently lost his job and has not found another one yet. He has been paying her $800 a month even though there is no court order forcing him to. His ex-wife is telling him that her attorney said the judge will use his tax return from last year to determine what amount of child support he should pay? My question is will a judge actually do that? I mean how can he be ordered to pay child support based on an income that no longer exists? She is also saying that he is going to have to pay her attorney’s fee after court. Is that true also? We are not trying to get out of paying child support but if he is ordered to pay that much without him working, we will go destitute and become homeless.
The answer depends on how your husband lost his job.
If your husband was laid off (his employment ended involuntarily), then a judge will not calculate child support based on his old income (from his 2016 W-2 for example). The judge may calculate child support based on unemployment income and may make the child support order temporary (with the assumption that he will find a new job with similar pay in time to enter a permanent order).
If your husband quit his job, was fired, or his employment ended for some bad faith reason on his part, then yes, the judge could still calculate child support using his previous job’s income.
It sounds like the ex-wife has a claim for attorney’s fees, but it is ultimately up to the judge whether or not to award attorney’s fees to her and against your husband. While making a claim to have attorney’s fees awarded is typical and commonplace, it is not as typical and common to actually have them awarded. However, it depends on the exact circumstances of each case.
Anna Ayscue
Attorney with Rosen Law Firm Cary • Chapel Hill • Durham • Raleigh • Wake Forest
Rosen Online | Unlimited confidential access to a North Carolina attorney for $199/mo - click here
The response posted above is based upon the limited factual information made available and is not intended as a full and complete response to the question. The only reliable manner to obtain complete and adequate legal advice is to consult with an attorney, fully explain your situation, and allow the attorney sufficient opportunity to research the applicable law and facts required to render an accurate opinion. The basic information provided above is intended as a public service only, a full discussion with an attorney should be undertaken before taking any action. The information posted on this forum is available for public viewing and is not intended to create an attorney client relationship with any individual. These answers are provided for informational purposes only, a person should consult with their own individual legal counsel before taking any action that could affect their legal rights or obligations.
Thank you for your response! That was very helpful! He lost his job because he was under a government contract and they did not renew. The whole company is doing lay offs. It was not a bad faith reason. His ex, however, is saying he is willfully unemployed because he had a permanent job and left it to work a “contract” job.
A judge could consider your husband leaving the permanent job for the contract job as bad faith if the judge believes he did this to impact his child support obligation for example. Otherwise, having a government contract that was not renewed is an involuntary termination of his employment that does not equal bad faith.
Anna Ayscue
Attorney with Rosen Law Firm Cary • Chapel Hill • Durham • Raleigh • Wake Forest
Rosen Online | Unlimited confidential access to a North Carolina attorney for $199/mo - click here
The response posted above is based upon the limited factual information made available and is not intended as a full and complete response to the question. The only reliable manner to obtain complete and adequate legal advice is to consult with an attorney, fully explain your situation, and allow the attorney sufficient opportunity to research the applicable law and facts required to render an accurate opinion. The basic information provided above is intended as a public service only, a full discussion with an attorney should be undertaken before taking any action. The information posted on this forum is available for public viewing and is not intended to create an attorney client relationship with any individual. These answers are provided for informational purposes only, a person should consult with their own individual legal counsel before taking any action that could affect their legal rights or obligations.