Back Due Child Support/garnishment ?

[luvHIM]

Here's a question for you all...the wife of a vet (the wife is my friend), I don't know the spouse. However, she shared that spouse has been married before and now has grown children. But when he stopped working due to disability could not pay child support. His claim was recently granted and they are expecting a decent back payment check.

However, her husband is now concerned that the child support division will take his back pay and future payments to pay back child support (support in arrears) because the actual child support case is now closed due to the children being adults now. Can anyone help with this question because I don't have a clue. What can be legally taken from veteran compensation and any back pay due him?

I have searched and found some information but it is confusing because it talks about aportionment and mainly vets who have retired. I searched BVA cases even. Many of them were cases filed by the ex-wife and denied. But they were not cases that dealt with garnishments of a veterans disability compensation benefits.

Can anyone in haditville help with this matter. Thanks.

Edited March 8, 2009 by luvHIM

[LarryJ]

Women, based solely upon their plumbing, are no more qualified to be a parent than a man. And, I won't EVEN get into the hormonal aspects thereof.

[timetowinarace]

probly should get back to the original question. Can VA comp be garnished for child support?

The question of if it SHOULD, or who should have custody, or anything else is off subject.

As near as I can tell, the answer is, by federal law, no it cannot as child support is not a federal debt. However, many states and often the federal government ignores this law when it comes to child support. In the end the answer is yes it can, depending on the state.

Personally, I feel the federal law should stand as stated for the protection of veterans compensation. There are other avenues to collect child support such as property liens. This is how a creditor can collect from a person with no garnishable income. Simply put a lien on such persons home, auto or whatever. I have a home, auto, ect and if I am sued for some reason, just because I have no garnishable income does not mean I don't have to pay if I do not want to.

A story to lighten things up a little. Locally, a man went in the child support services and payed $500 cash toward his past due amount. The next day he called and payed the remainder of around $20,000 by credit card. A month later the ex wife called very, very upset. She had been happy for the lump sum payment, took an expensive vacation, spent it all. The payment was made with HER credit card. Apparently, this was a card that was left her from the divorce. Despite urging from the ex husband to remove him from the card she failed to do so. She ended up responsible for the debt and had paid child support to herself. I bet she wishes she had kept the money for the kids. True story.

[deltaj]

Amen!

This is federal law but state courts are still using contempt powers to persaude dads retired from the military to sign to have their retainer pay attached because of the provisions of another federal law, the Uniformed Servics Former Spouse Protection Act. V.A. also uses a provision of law in Title 38 United States Code to award benefits, apportionment. Heck, they awarded two different apportionments to my husband's ex wife in 1987 and 1990 under 2 different names and as far as I know kept paying her both until his kids were grown.

Now for a true story about child support that you dads can relate to. My husband's grown daughter was getting married and her father, which is my husband, told his ex wife that he couldn't help with the cost of the wedding because he had a second family. As usual, he paid his court ordered child support that month. He was invited to the wedding and went down on the train from Montana to California. The evening of the wedding didn't go well. At one point in the evening during the reception after the wedding the ex wife stated, "Remember how you stated that you wouldn't help with the cost of the wedding? Well, see that cake over there?" [she pointed to an attractive wedding cake."] My husband stated, "Yes." The ex wife then said, "Your child support this month paid for that wedding cake." My husband was furious but didn't say much. He rarely drinks but that night he got drunk. Earlier in the evening he had walked the bride down the aisle before the ceremony but when he was asked "Who gives this woman in marriage?" he was asked by the bride and her mother to say in response, "Her mother, her family, and I." He did as he was asked but he told me later that saying, "her mother, her family, and I" made him feel as if her wasn't part of the family." We both feel certain that was the message his ex wife wanted him to receive. (Grrr.)

[jbasser]

This same topic was the cause of a major stink on SVR a few weeeks ago when a Veterans group asked Jim strickland to be an advocate for a Vet getting ordered to pay child and spousal support.

It is right to pay it but is also right to ensure the money is being spent on the child. I know another vet whos child suopport payments were going to mothers addiction, drinking, Dui fines and ect.

If there was some way to have a court appointed fudicary to oversee how the money is spent would be best in cases like that.

J

[luvHIM]

All the input has been appreciated. I think my friends husband will either rest easy or continue to fret over the unknown. Either way...my work here is done. Thanks!!