Support and custody agreements can be modified under certain circumstances with the aid of a family law attorney
Change is unavoidable. At some point, your life, your child’s life, or your former spouse’s life may change to such an extent that your support and custody agreements no longer seem fair or relevant. Fortunately, the law does provide for a means of addressing change. With the help of an expert family law attorney, you can petition for modifications to update your agreements.
What Circumstances Justify a Modification?
Anything the court regards as a “material change” in circumstances may warrant a modification to a child custody, alimony, or child support agreement. Some common scenarios include:
- The party paying child support or alimony loses their job and can’t pay as much support
- The party receiving support gets a new job, remarries, or enters a new domestic partnership and needs less support
- One parent is no longer fit to have custody due to drug use, criminal activity, mental illness, or abuse
- Visitation needs to be changed from supervised to unsupervised due to one parent demonstrating improved responsibility and parental fitness
It is important to note that whenever the time share in a custody agreement is changed, the support agreement will typically also need to be changed to reflect this new division of childcare responsibilities.
Who Initiates a Petition for Modifications?
Either party can request modifications to an agreement, so whether you are the one paying support or the one receiving it, you have the ability to make a case for a modification. However, it is important to note that some aspects of some agreements may be unmodifiable. For example, if a child support agreement contained provisions for expenses not normally under the jurisdiction of the court (such as college tuition for kids over 18), and these provisions were specifically designated as unmodifiable in the agreement, the court should not be able to change them, even if the parents’ financial situations change dramatically. In this case a parent may have to break the contract if they are unable to meet their obligations and face any associated legal consequences.
Need Advice?
At Kendall & Gkikas, we have ample experience in the creation and modification of all kinds of child support, child custody, and alimony agreements. We can help you fight for agreements that will continue to provide for the best interests of your child even amid changing circumstances. Please contact us today to discuss your case and get honest and reliable answers to all your questions about modifications.
