North Dakota parents can change their child support orders under certain circumstances. The courts recognize that life circumstances can change and sometimes, it is necessary to alter a paying parent’s child support obligations to ensure that he or she is being treated fairly. This article will discuss some of the most common reasons why child support orders might be changed.
There might be a change in the child’s needs. For example, if a child with special needs becomes more independent by healing and/or overcoming an aspect his or her illness, the child may no longer require as much financial support as he or she did in the past. Or, maybe the child qualifies for social security benefits and does not require as much financial support. Conversely, the child’s condition might worsen and he or she will require more financial support from the child support paying parent.
Changes in living costs could also necessitate a change in a child support order. Also, if one or the other parent is suddenly incarcerated, it could render that parent either unable to care for the child, or unable to earn money to pay child support, and the support order will need to be changed accordingly. Unemployment, a significant change in family income (for good or for bad), the disability status of both parents and/or a change in child support laws could also necessitate an adjustment to support orders.
Depending on the severity of the change in life circumstances, any of the above could be sufficient reasons for a North Dakota court to change a parent’s child support orders. However, it is vital for parents affected by these issues to petition the court as soon as possible, to prevent their child support obligations from going unpaid.
Source: FindLaw, “Can I Change a Child Support Order After Changing Jobs?,” accessed April 29, 2016
