questions & answers

Question: My son's father and I have had a verbal mutual agreement with him helping me with child support so we would not have to deal with the court. We are still "legally married". He has another kid and is paying child support through the court, which then brought my case as well. The day of the ruling the judge asked if I agreed to have dad pay back child support from three years ago, which I said yes. Can I waive the back pay order, once it has been placed without having to interfere with the current monthly child support ruling?

Answer: You can go back to the judge with a petition that states you are waiving the back support portion of his order and ask him to enter an order to that effect.  You can also choose to do nothing and simply refund all the back payments to your ex.  However, the refund method is fraught with potential problems.  Confusion with red tape can occur.  Also, if at some juncture you need the back support and he is on record as having already paid it, you will be out of luck.  The request you file with the judge does not need to be a complicated document.  A simple, one page request will do.  However, there is no specific form to use.  Be sure the caption and case number are on the document.