Legal Question in Family Law in Illinois

Does Child Support Accrue When the Obligor is Unemployed?

In Illinois, as a general rule, child support continues to accrue against the obligor, even during periods of unemployment. Also as a general rule, back child support cannot be modified retroactively, and modification will apply only to payment obligations after notice of the filing of a petition to modify has been sent.

This means that child support arrearage continues to grow. It does not mean you can get it right now. If the obligor has no income and no assets, well, as they say: "You can't get blood out of a stone." Still, you can search out (e.g., a citation to discover assets) and attach his assets through an enforcement of judgment procedure. You can take him to court, and a court might make him go out to find a job, or do other potentially productive things, but even a court can't make money appear where there is none.

Re: Child support Question

Dear Inquirer:

Nothing herein shall create an attorney-client relationship, unless a written retainer agreement is executed by the attorney and client. This communication contains general information only. Nothing herein shall constitute an attorney-client communication nor legal advice. There likely are deadlines and time-limits associated with your case; you should contact an attorney of your choice for legal advice specific to your personal situation, at once.

If you haven't already done so, please visit my

web site at --

http://home.pacbell.net/edbjr/ OR

http://www.CaliforniaDivorceAttorney.com

The site contains quite a bit of general information about California Family Law, Tenants' Rights, and Juvenile Dependencies, as well as information about me (education, experience, et cetera) and my office (location, hours, fees, policies).

NOW, IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INQUIRY --

In most states, the amount of child support remains unchanged, and unpaid child support accrues, until the paying spouse goes into court to modify the amount. If you live in California, you can go into court, register your IL judgment, and enforce payment through the California courts and/or the Department of Family/Child Support Services.

Thanks for sharing your interesting inquiry, and good luck with your case.