Caught In The Middle Of Family Court... What To Do?

[Bardene]

My mother and father have been separated given that I was just months old so I've usually been accustomed to this. I turned 18 final December and my father decided to cease paying child help to my mother, with whom I live. I stay with my father every single weekend.My mother is taking my father to family court now and I'm caught in the middle of it.My mother lately remarried and honestly does not actually need to have the cash, both her and her husband operate, and my mother has very high-priced tastes and is not very good at saving income. My father lives in a trailer and has somewhat unsteady perform, he functions as a distributor and delivers meals to stores, how considerably he gets paid depends on how considerably individuals acquire/do not buy.My father has paid for numerous hundreds of dollars of repair to my automobile(which he gave me) and provides me money each and every weekend, he also does his best to purchase me camera gear(I am a photographer) and so he IS supporting me but my mom cannot realize that because it's not money in her pocket Aid

[Chin-Hwa]

This is from the NYC child assistance internet site:   When do youngster support payments end?In New York State, the non-custodial parent is essential to pay kid help until the child reaches age 21.  Help could cease earlier if it can be proven to the court that the kid is emancipated.  That indicates the child is not living with his or her parents and has a supply of earnings, is in the military, or married. In some situations, assistance could continue previous age 21 for education or healthcare motives, if ordered by the court. The youngster help order will not be terminated if the non-custodial parent becomes incarcerated.  If the help order was established in an additional state, the age of emancipation of that state will be followed. Your Dad will probably shed his case, but might extremely well uncover his payments lowered. If you had been emancipated, the payments could be terminated. Bear in mind this is NOT your battle. This is among your parents. Great Luck!

[Othomann]

Eighteen is often the age that ends child support because legally you are no longer a minor.  In some families the court rules that support continues while the child goes to college or the parents split tuition.  But in families where the parents are not in a position to send the child to school, 18 is considered an adult although the agreement might have said support until June if you are still in high school.    This is the time when as an adult you need to be getting a job and contributing to your own support.  Is there some reason you are not working?  You should have been making plans for this during the last couple of years, I'm sure your high school offered plenty of opportunities to make plans.  From the way you describe your parents, neither one seems to be a good role model in setting goals and planning how to achieve them.  That makes it even more important that you get yourself in hand.  Otherwise you will find yourself just floating along whichever the way the wind blows, with a job that barely covers your expenses or enough money but no idea how it's spent.   The saddest thing at this point is your parents seem to have wasted time over the last 18 years with negativity.  Learn from them but don't get involved.  They will continue even when you are no longer the point of their arguments.  Now you must take charge of your own life.  Get a job.  Work on improving your skills so you can advance in life.  Go to trade school, college or the military, but start now to become someone.

[Douglass]

Depends on their agreement.... You are an adult and your mother is not entitled to child support any longer unless their agreement stipulates anything beyond 18, such as if you are still in school.  Any support past the age of 18 should be paid to you and not your mother anyway.  Tell her your opinions and how what she is doing makes you feel.  Sounds like greed to me, it is a method of control as well, she needs to get over it. I am sorry you have to go through this. Kismet 68 months ago Please sign in to give a compliment. Please verify your account to give a compliment. Please sign in to send a message. Please verify your account to send a message.

[Tomo]

You are an adult and your mother is not entitled to child support any longer unless their agreement stipulates anything beyond 18, such as if you are still in school.  Any support past the age of 18 should be paid to you and not your mother anyway.  Tell her your opinions and how what she is doing makes you feel.  Sounds like greed to me, it is a method of control as well, she needs to get over it. I am sorry you have to go through this.

[tripp]

Time for mom to let go... I'm sorry you feel put in the middle, but this one has a fairly easy solution in my opinion.  You are 18, an adult, and your mom has no right to "child support" anymore.  Rather than take it to family court, they should be talking with you about what your needs are, what your life goals are, and how they can both contribute either financially or otherwise to help you get there.  Depending upon their relationship, this may or not be possible - I understand.  But you are ultimately the one in control, and as an adult you are responsible for supporting yourself.  Take control, get out of the middle, and tell your mom with all due respect and love, she is in the wrong, and should consider a more civil and less stressful approach to helping you get where you are going.   Best of luck! AquaMan 68 months ago Please sign in to give a compliment. Please verify your account to give a compliment. Please sign in to send a message. Please verify your account to send a message.

[Devion]

HI JD...I can see why you feel caught in the middle. One thing that I want to tell you is this...from a pure and simple law point of view....if the Court ordered your Daddy to pay child support for a certain length of time and your Daddy stopped paying it, by law he is wrong.  If the Court only ordered the support to be paid until you reach the age of 18, he is right..because you are now 18.  Your Mom, being your Mom, has a right to take him back to Court if she feels that he should still be paying support, but she is going to have to gave really good reasons for the Court to make him continue to pay if the order before is finished.  I would think, now that you are 18, and considered an adult, that the Court will speak to you about this.  If they do, you have no choice but to answer the questions that are asked of you.  Do not tell any untruths...just tell the truth.  Your Mom may not like the outcome...but your job is to tell the truth and let the chips  fall where they may.  If the Court asks you nothing, then you have to make a decision as to whether you blow your Mom out of the water .. or keep your mouth shut...if it were me....I would want the Court to know what your Dad is doing for you.   Unfortunately in domestic matters, it does not matter how long ago the divorce was ...sometimes the bitterness just does not go away and one parent wants to always stick it to the other parent.  All we know is what you have told us, but based on that, I would say that your Mom is out for all that she can get.  Hang in there...this too shall pass :) Sources: my opinion LglSec 68 months ago Please sign in to give a compliment. Please verify your account to give a compliment. Please sign in to send a message. Please verify your account to send a message.

[Carleton]

and simple law point of view....if the Court ordered your Daddy to pay child support for a certain length of time and your Daddy stopped paying it, by law he is wrong.  If the Court only ordered the support to be paid until you reach the age of 18, he is right..because you are now 18.  Your Mom, being your Mom, has a right to take him back to Court if she feels that he should still be paying support, but she is going to have to gave really good reasons for the Court to make him continue to pay if the order before is finished.  I would think, now that you are 18, and considered an adult, that the Court will speak to you about this.  If they do, you have no choice but to answer the questions that are asked of you.  Do not tell any untruths...just tell the truth.  Your Mom may not like the outcome...but your job is to tell the truth and let the chips  fall where they may.  If the Court asks you nothing, then you have to make a decision as to whether you blow your Mom out of the water .. or keep your mouth shut...if it were me....I would want the Court to know what your Dad is doing for you.   Unfortunately in domestic matters, it does not matter how long ago the divorce was ...sometimes the bitterness just does not go away and one parent wants to always stick it to the other parent.  All we know is what you have told us, but based on that, I would say that your Mom is out for all that she can get.  Hang in there...this too shall pass :)

[Arley]

I'm sorry you feel put in the middle, but this one has a fairly easy solution in my opinion.  You are 18, an adult, and your mom has no right to "child support" anymore.  Rather than take it to family court, they should be talking with you about what your needs are, what your life goals are, and how they can both contribute either financially or otherwise to help you get there.  Depending upon their relationship, this may or not be possible - I understand.  But you are ultimately the one in control, and as an adult you are responsible for supporting yourself.  Take control, get out of the middle, and tell your mom with all due respect and love, she is in the wrong, and should consider a more civil and less stressful approach to helping you get where you are going.   Best of luck!

[Dagan]

It should be in the divorce/custody agreement. Eighteen is often the age that ends child support because legally you are no longer a minor.  In some families the court rules that support continues while the child goes to college or the parents split tuition.  But in families where the parents are not in a position to send the child to school, 18 is considered an adult although the agreement might have said support until June if you are still in high school.    This is the time when as an adult you need to be getting a job and contributing to your own support.  Is there some reason you are not working?  You should have been making plans for this during the last couple of years, I'm sure your high school offered plenty of opportunities to make plans.  From the way you describe your parents, neither one seems to be a good role model in setting goals and planning how to achieve them.  That makes it even more important that you get yourself in hand.  Otherwise you will find yourself just floating along whichever the way the wind blows, with a job that barely covers your expenses or enough money but no idea how it's spent.   The saddest thing at this point is your parents seem to have wasted time over the last 18 years with negativity.  Learn from them but don't get involved.  They will continue even when you are no longer the point of their arguments.  Now you must take charge of your own life.  Get a job.  Work on improving your skills so you can advance in life.  Go to trade school, college or the military, but start now to become someone. galileogirl 68 months ago Please sign in to give a compliment. Please verify your account to give a compliment. Please sign in to send a message. Please verify your account to send a message.