Bullock County Child Support Lawyers & Attorneys

When child support is being argued by our Bullock County child support lawyer and eventually determined by a court, the non-custodial parent is usually responsible for making child support payments until the child becomes a legal adult which is nineteen years of age in Alabama. However, the child support amount is not written in stone and can be changed by a Bullock County child support attorney if the non-custodial parent has changes in their circumstances and if a considerable amount of time has passed since child support was first ordered. Having spent an outstanding amount on a hospital bill or something that has to do with the child’s care can also be grounds for being changing child support amount.

Our Bullock County child support attorneys can file a petition in the Circuit Court in order for our to get your child support obligations modified. A local child support lawyer in Bullock County should file your petition in the Circuit Court of Bullock County if the child’s custodial parent lives there or if the original child support order took place in the Bullock County Circuit Court.

Our Bullock County and Montgomery child support lawyers can help you file a Petition to Modify Child Support with the Circuit Clerk. Our Union Springs child support attorney will ensure that the petition is listed using the exact same names used in the original case. If you are not using a local child support lawyer then you will need to fill out the top portion of a summons (available on the Circuit Clerk’s website). Additionally, there is a filing fee which varies from county to county. The clerks cannot help you fill out the forms and will advise you to seek a Bullock County child support attorney for legal questions. Call our child support lawyers in Bullock County today and let us help you file the petition correctly.

The court will usually want to see an income change of more than 10% to consider a child support modification in Bullock County, Alabama. That can be a change for either parent. So if the custodial parent is now making 50% more per year than they were when child support was last determined, and you are making the same, you could petition the court to lower your monthly child support obligation.

Other situations that could warrant our Bullock County child support attorneys filing a petition include: the child support currently being paid is no longer adequate to meet the needs of the child, the financial situation of one or both parents has changed, there is no provision for medical support for the child, or the child has significantly more needs than he or she did previously. Either parent can petition the court to modify child support obligations in Bullock County, Alabama. The changes will take effect after the judgement and will apply retroactively to all payments made after the petition was filed. Call our child support lawyers in Bullock County today for a consultation.

When filing a Petition for Modification, you should always state your reason(s) for requesting a modification of child support and offer substantiating documentation. Once our Bullock County child support lawyer files your petition, a copy will be sent by the court to the child’s other parent for service of process. Once served, our child support attorney in Bullock County will go to the hearing with you and argue your case to the judge.

At the hearing, the Bullock County judge will listen to both sides to determine if any modifications should be made, and if so, how much. That is why it is so important to seek an experienced family law attorney. At the Harris Firm, our Bullock County child support lawyers work on a retainer basis to file child support modifications. We will fill out and prepare the documents, file them for you, and attend the hearings with you. At the hearing, our child support attorneys will use their knowledge of the law and your specific circumstances to be your advocate to the court. It is not uncommon for a court to modify the amount of child support a non-custodial parent has to pay each month, but it is less common for child support obligations to be terminated.

Parents paying child support are required to do so until the child turns nineteen, the legal adult age in Alabama. The only other straightforward way for a court to terminate child support obligations is in the tragic event of the child’s death. Other situations where the court may consider terminating child support is if the non-custodial parent loses or forfeits his or her parental rights, the non-custodial parent obtains physical custody of the child, or non-custodial parent requests the child be emancipated. Emancipation is typically only approved in very specific situations. For example, if an eighteen year old child joins the military. Our Bullock County child support lawyers can advise you if you think your obligations might be terminated.

In very limited circumstances, a court may extend child support obligations beyond the child’s 19th birthday. One of the most common reasons a court would extend child support is if the child is disabled. Child support does not end at nineteen if the child is unable to care for themselves due to physical or mental disability.

The law has gone back and forth on parents helping adult children through college. Currently, per Christopher v. Christopher, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that there is no requirement for a parent to pay tuition, fees, books, room/board, etc. for their adult children in college. Parents can, of course, make their own agreements and arrangements about those expenses. But it is no longer an extension of child support.  Call our Bullock County child support attorney today for a quick phone or video consultation.