Child Support

Property Division and Adult Disabled Child in Texas Divorce Case

Published on: December 27, 2016 | by Kelly McClure

In the Matter of Luna and Vicente Luna considered an appeal from a final divorce decree in 2015, which was memorialized in a written decree that granted a couple’s divorce, divided their property, and provided for support and conservatorship of their adult disabled child. The couple had married in 1980 and separated in 2014. During their marriage, the father started a construction company.

By the time of the divorce, the couple disagreed about the company’s ownership. The father claimed he’d sold half of the company to his son, but he later testified the son was an employee earning $23/hr. During cross-examination, the son admitted the name certificate did not include his name until 2015, and his father had responsibility for paying payroll taxes and had authority to write checks.

At trial, the father testified the construction company had paid no federal income taxes, nor had it entered profit and loss statements into the record. The total of the evidence came from introducing banking records for the construction company for 2013, 2014, and 2015.

Retroactive Child Support in Texas

Published on: November 10, 2016 | by Kelly McClure

In the Texas appellate case of In re Aer, a father appealed a divorce decree in connection with an award of retroactive child support and the distribution of marital property. The mother and father sued for divorce. The court held a bench trial and appointed the couple joint managing conservators of the children. The mother was the parent with the exclusive right to designate the children’s primary address. She was also awarded over $50,000 in retroactive child support, attorneys’ fees, and 80% of the marital estate (according to the father).

The father appealed, claiming that the evidence for the child support award and property distribution was legally and factually insufficient. The appellate court explained that it would consider whether the trial court had enough evidence upon which to use its discretion and whether it had made a mistake in applying its discretion. It further explained that a trial court has broad discretion to award attorneys’ fees under Texas Family Code § 106.002. The mother’s attorney had provided testimony regarding his fees and claimed that the high fees were driven by the father’s conduct in not answering timely discovery and dumping unorganized documents on him. The court found there was no abuse of discretion in awarding $130,000 in fees to the mother.

The father also argued that the mother didn’t have pleadings to support her request for retroactive child support. The mother’s attorney had asked during closing arguments that child support be paid retroactively to June 2012, due to the father’s intentional unemployment or underemployment during that period. However, the father had not objected at trial to either the closing arguments or the mother’s request to include an order to pay retroactive child support, nor did he object at the time the trial court signed the divorce decree, including retroactive child support. The court concluded these complaints weren’t preserved for review.

Enforcing a Child Support Order in Texas

Published on: July 21, 2016 | by Kelly McClure

In Ochsner v. Ochsner, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on a child support order that required the father to pay for his daughter’s school and to pay through a registry when she changed schools.

The couple had divorced in 2001, and the divorce decree included a child support order. The father was to pay the mother $240 each month in two installments and would also pay the daughter’s preschool directly. After the daughter stopped going to that preschool, the father was to pay the mother $400 in two installments and also pay a registry the school tuition payments. The order stated that his failure to comply could result in his not getting credit for making the payment.

The daughter stopped going to the preschool, and the father kept making the $240 per month payments to the mother. Instead of paying the registry, the father paid the new school directly, making payments that were $20,000 more than what was required by the original order. The mother was contractually obligated to pay the tuition.

Twins With Two Different Dads, Not Impossible

Published on: May 11, 2015 | by Francesca Blackard

It’s called superfecundation– while fertile, if a woman sleeps with two men during the same fertility cycle, she can conceive twins from two separate fathers. This is not very common, but it is not impossible. 1 out of every 13,000 cases involving twins involves superfecundation.

In New Jersey, a woman tried to collect child support from a man she believed to be the father of her twins. She was right, but only half right. DNA Test Results proved he was only the father of one of the twins, but not the father of the other.

Devon Still and Outstanding Child Support? What if in Texas?

Published on: December 5, 2014 | by McClure Law Group

Many have heard the story of Devon Still and his daughter Leah—a four year old in a battle with cancer. Recently, it was reported that Devon Still ex, and mother of Leah, is accusing Mr. Still of failing to pay child support for many months. The question that many are asking is whether Mr. Still’s financial support for his daughter outside of “child support” would offset his child support obligation. If this occurred in Texas, what would a Court say?

In Texas, the answer is most likely no, and Mr. Still would be facing jail time for contempt of Court if he failed to pay court-ordered child support. Hypothetically, Assume that Mr. Still is under an order to pay child support in Texas. Would he have any defense for his failure to pay (other financial support, medical support, etc.)? The Texas Family Code has specific defenses for the failure to pay child support. These include voluntary relinquishment by the obligee (party owed support) to the obligor (party responsible for paying support). Basically, if the obligee gives the obligor more time than ordered by the Court, the obligor can have a defense to failure to pay child support if he also provided actual support of the child. In Mr. Still’s case, if he had possession of his daughter full-time due to the fact that her mother voluntarily relinquished their daughter to Mr. Still, then he would have an affirmative defense to the Court’s enforcement of his child support obligation. Continue Reading ›