On behalf of The Law Offices of Mary Ann Beaty, PC posted in Child Support on Wednesday, August 5, 2015.

Maybe you have a child to care for, but the other parent isn’t helping. You are at a loss as to what to do. Or maybe you yourself are a non-custodial parent in Dallas unable to meet your child support obligations due to a job loss, a medical condition, or other legitimate reasons; you fear the legal consequences of being found in contempt of court. As we at the Law Offices of Mary Ann Beaty have come to see on a daily basis, child support is rarely a cookie-cutter issue.

It’s true, on the one hand, that Texas law does provide a child support formula for determining child support levels. These take into account the custodial parent’s financial situation as well as the costs of health care, day care and other expenses. A court order for child support is a binding legal obligation, and if your child’s non-custodial parent is not meeting this obligation, a Dallas child support enforcement attorney from our firm can help you understand your options, including filing charges for contempt of court.

If you are a non-custodial parent running the risk of falling behind on child support, you also have legal options to address the issue of your delinquent payments. Perhaps you have experienced a sudden, unexpected change in your income level, due to a job loss or otherwise. Health problems can also pose real challenges to continuing to make monthly child support payments. A legal professional can discuss the possibility of a child support modification in these situations; it’s also possible to request a modification if the custodial parent remarries.

The bottom line is that both custodial parents and non-custodial parents have legal rights and options with regard to child support. Further, as we discussed last week, factors like a parent’s age may also come into play. Professionals from the Law Offices of Mary Ann Beaty understand the importance of child support and can assist with a diverse range of issues that Dallas parents may face.