Texas has established laws that dictate that child support payments are the primary responsibility of the parent who has been ordered to financially support the child in a child custody situation. In several cases where the non-custodial parent has defaulted on their child support payments, the custodial parent has the legal right to hire an attorney to recover any child support payments that were owed but that have not been paid. In some cases, even the non-custodial parent’s employer and government agencies can be brought in to help recover any unpaid child support.
Recently, 15 noncustodial parents were arrested in Texas for having defaulted on their child support payments. The Texas Attorney General’s office stated that the noncustodial parents arrested by the authorities had violated approximately 20 court orders of child support.
All of the defaulting non-custodial parents were arrested by Texas police when three teams were sent out to investigate them. Noncustodial parents could be sentenced to six months in prison. The bail amount posted for all of these parents was to be given to the custodial parents and the children, who need the money more than anyone.
In a case where the noncustodial parent defaults on the child support payments repeatedly, an experienced family attorney can often help the custodial parent with the money that is owed to the child, not only from the responsible noncustodial parent but also from the noncustodial parent’s employer and the insurance company. Social security benefits can also be garnished in order to pay for child support. In some cases, even declaring bankruptcy does not eliminate the responsibility that the noncustodial parent has toward the child and any default can attract severe penalties.
Source: VictoriaAdvocate.com, “15 parents arrested for not paying child support,” June 12, 2015
