Legal Question in Family Law in California

Ex husband is unemployed in CA. I live in WA. He has been unemployed for nearly sis months. He had the CS amount lowered by over 500. He was making very good money and now is making 450/week and paying 300/month. He also dropped child off of insurance and did not cobra. His current wife has very good stable job (100k+). I don't think he is looking for a job. He doesn't need to because of wife's income and unemployment. I know he is taking internet courses in an entirely unrelated field. He posted on his Facebook that he is "getting ready for eventual job interview" in new industry. I have a lawyer in Ca who hasn't been particularly helpful but has had the paperwork filed etc. I thought that ex would have to prove he was looking for a job, but he doesn't.

Is there any hope for me. I am struggling mightily to support 15 yo daughter.


Asked on 9/22/09, 1:09 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

You can get a "find work" order, but you have to jump through a lot of hoops to do it. Fairly or unfairly you can't force a new spouse to contribute to support children of a prior marriage. So only the non-custodial parent's income is considered. If your ex really is working to change fields and is getting ready to look for work in those fields, the best you can probably do is keep and eye on his progress and make sure you collect support based on his new income once he gets a job.

You can also file your support order with the California Child Support Services in the county where he lives. They can tap into state tax and vehicle records to keep track of him and his work history, and file wage assignment orders on your behalf.

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Answered on 9/22/09, 4:27 pm


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