Conference quark::mennotes-v1

    Well, sorry to say but, its up to the courts to decide where the limit
    is... In other words, you loose.  You might try to prove that she is
    indeed trying to "tap your bucket" and living outside her means, but
    the chances of you winning are slim, I am sorry to say. 
    
    You have to really look deep inside yourself and decide if you are
    willing (and have the emotional strength) to fight this.  I, for one,
    would.... but, thats me.
    
    Good luck.
    
    AL

    	Get a good lawyer and get her credit records. Use them in court.
    If she's making all of her (their) payments on time try to see if your
    Child support is being used correctly. If their credit is lax, bad
    payments etc., use that as a weapon against them, showing that they are
    irresponsible.
    
    	Another thing is to offer payment directly for school clothes,
    instruments, etc, but not direct monetary payments to mom.
    
    	Don't bitch about it in court, don't have the lawyer whine. Use
    cold hard facts. 
    
    	You may be paying too little. If you paying $50 or less per child
    per week, that equates to $2500 a year per child and most courts feel
    that that's too little by today's standards, especially if you're
    taking home $500 or more. A 50% raise will be the order of the day.
    One thing that you have going is that a DEC salaries are frozen and
    have been for nearly a year. The court will consider that.
    
    Good Luck..
    
    Ken

    Of course you can always get custody of the children and not pay
    her a dime again.  Certainly now you can show a better financial
    situation which would be better for the kids and there is no issue
    of the children having a mother.  You may even be able to hit her
    for child payments since she is employed.
    
    Just the thought of this action may be enough to dissuade her from
    stating to the courts she can't make ends meet.  Better make sure
    you are willing to follow through though.  This can't be just a
    bluff.

    The summons says that you should bring copies of your pay stubs and
    your spouses pay stubs.  My second wife refused to give me copies of
    her pay stubs. I told the judge that she refused.  It must be a common
    occurrance...he didn't do anything to me because of that.  What it
    really comes down to is a comparison of her after child-care-expensed
    and self-care-expensed income to your after self-care-expensed income. 
    There is a totally unreasonable ($395) self care allottment.  If you
    chose to itemize your self care expenses then you have to declare your
    spouses income and calculate your share.  Two kids runs around 600 to
    800 bucks/month depending on your base) Self-employed individuals have
    a better chance in this regard because they may be able to show a net
    loss.  
    
    Lots of luck!
    
    

    If you don't pay 1/2 of you'r *take home pay* you got it made. With the
    new ...... guide lines........... that's about the norm.
                            Any way........good luck !
                                                            Dan

    Got another 'question', to all of this!  <However, I will be meeting
    with my attorney this Friday>.  I'm paying, by wage assignment,
    child support for 2.  I have no problem with paying, nor did I ever
    have a problem...my kids is my kids, right?  The wage assignment
    bit was all her lawyer could do for her....to justify his fee??
    Makes 'ya wonder, doesn't it!!
    
    Anyway, my ex has re-married.   The child support guidelines were
    calculated on the standard Mass. worksheet, and, at that time, there
    was a different set of financials in the picture.  My son, now 18
    works quite a bit and is in his Sr. year of high school.  I've always
    done his taxes returns for him, but for some reason....he didn't
    ask me last year.  There's been a 'significant' change in the
    financials....between my son's income, which I estimate to be in
    excess of $12K/yr (part time) and now that she's re-married, her
    husbands income should now count too....It's total 'legal' income
    under the same roof...thus the attorney on Friday...'again'...
    
    What really gets my goat, is that I know females who could *really*
    use some help...and they get nothing....and this state has the 'nerve'
    to 'brag' about the crackdowns on 'non-paying' fathers??  They hit
    5% of the total and they want a pat on the
    back...garbo...politics...etc.
    
    Anybody else out there in a similar situation?
    
    Thanks,
    
    Geo
    

    In S.C. once the kid hits 18 yrs. you don't have to pay any more.
    Unless thier still in High School.

    In reply to .6:
    
    I just thought it would be interesting to add a bit about the other
    side of the coin.  When I divorced my ex-husband 4 years ago, I knew I
    would be lucky to get any money from him for child support so 'agreed'
    to accept $100 dollars a MONTH for each of my three daughters.  As I
    originally figured, some months I got money and some I didn't.  I've
    since re-married and have moved to Scotland.  In order to bring my
    girls with me I ammended (with his permission) the child custody 
    agreement so that it now states that all child support money will be
    placed into a seperate bank account and utilised to purchase tickets
    for the girls to visit their father (once a year).  He does buy the 
    tickets, but spends as little as possible on the girls otherwise. 
    A cheap/no-frills ticket would be OK, if the girls would benefit by
    having the remainder of the support money spent on them while
    visiting, but that does NOT happen.  
    
    My intentions in submitting this reply are to let you see not all
    people are out to cause hassle with their ex. I feel for you in your
    constant struggle.  The only thing I know I wanted once the old love
    had died from my ex was to be left alone. 
    
    I find myself thinging MORE about the relationship the girls
    do NOT have with their dad then the monetary benefit I would
    make if he paid support money to us.  Although the girls have a very
    thoughtful Step-father and think VERY highly of him.  Thay continue to
    WISH their real father would take more interest in them.  It's sad
    for him that he hasen't, as my oldest daughter (age 20) is struggling
    within herself to understand 'WHY', and has virtually shut him out of
    her life, assuming he "dosen't LOVE her. 
    
    The next in-line (age 17) has decided NOT to visit in 1990,
    and has sent a letter to her father asking if he would send the 
    accumulated money over next year to help finance her 1st year in
    college. She has already told me she dosen't think he will do it so
    has started working to help US pay for it.
    
    The youngest (13) still thinks of her father as "the best in
    the world".  I would NOT try to change her opinion, although mine
    differs considerably. Besides who am I to burst her bubble, reality comes
    all to soon in life.  
    
    Just my two cents worth.
    
    Vivian 
                                                                 

I've heard various mentions in this and other notes of the Mass.
Worksheet/Formula to figure out child support.  While I know there is some
leeway, I'd like to know what the figure are meant to be.

I'm separated currently and working on legalising it all.  Before it gets
too expensive I'd like to know what the figures really are, as opposed
to what I'm currently paying.

Any pointers please ??

Bernard.

    Well it depends on how many children you have but here is the basic
    worksheet:
    
    
    Basic order
    
    1.		a) Non custodial gross weekly income
    		   (less any prior support obligation)     ____________
    
    		b) % of gross/number of children
    		   From chart 111a  FOR 1 child its                 27%
    
		c) Basic order   (a) x (b)		   (A)__________
    
    2. Adjustment for ages of children
    
    		a) Age of oldest child				________
    
    		b) % increase for age  (chart 111b)               _________%
    
    		c) Age add on  (2b) x (a)                   __________

    		d) Adjusted order  (a) + (2c)               (B) _________
    
    3. Custodial parent income adjustment
    
    		a) Custodial parent gross income             _____________
    
    		b) Less $15,000
    
    		c) Less annual day care cost
    
    		d) Custodial adjusted gross                _____________
    
    		e) Non custodial gross Annual		    _____________
    
    		f) Total avail gross (d) + (e)              ____________
    
    		g) Line 3(d)_______   Line 3(f)__________

    		h) 3(d) divideded by 3(f)  _________%
    
    		i) Adj for custodial income (line 3h% ) x (B)   (C)_____

    
    4. Calculation of final order
    
    		a) Adjusted order (b) above			(B)_____
    
    		b) Less adjustment for income (C)		(C)-_____
    
    		c) Less weekley cost of family group
    		   health insurance			          -_____
    
    Weekly support order  (B) - (C) - 4(c)             $___________
    
    See a lawyer for a copy of the guidelines the state uses...
    
    Hope this helps....

    
    re: .0
    
    	Sincere good luck to you, I would be surprised if you are *not*
    already paying a large chunk of income towards childamony and the
    fact is that this area has to be one of the worst for discrimination
    against males existing today. I agreed with the "fight it" attitude
    with whatever means are available (ie: countersuit)...
    
    re: .8
>        WISH their real father would take more interest in them.  It's sad
>    for him that he hasen't, as my oldest daughter (age 20) is struggling
>    within herself to understand 'WHY', and has virtually shut him out of
>    her life, assuming he "dosen't LOVE her. 
 
    	Interest is tough to transmit across the Atlantic!
    
    Rick

    re: 11
    
    <<< Interest is tough to transmit across the atlantic.
    
    I agree, however she returned to California two years ago and stayed 
    with her dad until he 'asked' her to leave. She moved across town from
    him and until very recently has continued to phone, visit etc.  He on
    the other hand has never phoned, visited, or made any attempt to
    'see' if she is Okay. She by no means is living-it-up but is going
    to school (full-time) plus holding down a job. 
     
    I chalk up his non-interest as another affirmation of why I divorced him.  
    
    Vivian