[cep822]

I posted here a few months ago on the subject of bringing contempt charges on unpaid child support. This may be long. Thank you for your time.

A refresher on my case:

It is in Ohio, I have sole physical and sole legal custody, and my son's father is required to pay $898 a month in support as well as 68% of uninsured medical expenses. At no time has he paid any of it in full, and has hardly paid anything at all.

Well, since my last posting, our contempt hearing was supposed to be held March 25, but my ex called in to the court and apparently spoke to the magistrate personally and lied, telling the magistrate that the county in which he resides had declared a level two snow emergency and so he would not be able to safely make it. I have documentation from the Sheriff's Office showing there was no snow emergency. However the court did not check on his story, and put our court date out over another month... on a date smack in the middle of a huge legal discovery at work (I am a paralegal for a medical device corporation). It irritates me his chronic lack of employment and responsibility means he has all kinds of time for these games and I do not. Anyhow... after this he suddenly has sporadically been making tiny payments on his balance (now over $10,000).
These payments have been:

$35.00
$75.00

Will this play any part in contempt hearings? Will it buy him any mercy?

I honestly do not care about the money. I am pursuing contempt in the hopes he will then sign off on a stepparent adoption to avoid further financial trouble, and I can terminate visits (or at least overnights- my son should know bio dad). My pediatrician is about to alert CPS due to the poor condition my son has been returning from his "father"'s in, he has eczema and allergies and is returning in horrible shape (broken out). I always take him to the doctor to document and most recently she said she would be forced to contact authorities if my son returned in such poor shape again.

In that vein, how hard is it to move for a change in visitation? Is it worth an investment? Obviously it is for my son's wellbeing but I am not going to throw away money if it will not succeed anyway.

[Fr_Chuck]

Welcome to the legal system, and he is likely to ask to be continued again, this is normal legal activities, lawyers do it all the time, to put things off,

His few payments will not help much, My guess at the hearing, they will set up a new payment plan for future and behind payments, and then if he does not do them, you start this all over again bringing him back to court.

** don't expect him to see jail this time yet.

[cep822]

Firstly thank you for your reply.

My ex can longer afford a lawyer. His lawyer dropped him due to nonpayment. Oh, the irony. I do not think this is lawyer games, he is just trying to avoid the consequences.

So no jail time at all? No suspended sentence for the payment plan to ensure compliance? How disappointing.

[cdad]

How did you receive the "payments" and if it ere by check was it noted as child support?

Also in your filing for contempt what have you asked the courts to do?

[cep822]

I receive the payments through CSEA (direct deposit into my bank account). Records reflect it was a cash payment.

I have asked the courts to find him in contempt, put a lien on his property, and take whatever action necessary to enforce.