Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland
Maryland child support
My question is somewhat complicated, but I will try my best to explain it through summarized background info. My husband fathered two children(twins) by another woman a year and some months before we were married. We had been in a relationship several years before this occured, and had a child of our own. The woman sued him for child support, which he pays now. She was not working at the time, and the State of MD was at one point taking more than 60% of his paycheck. She has now given up legal guardianship of the children to her mother, their grandmother, in order to join the armed forces. Since being married, we have had another child. Does he have legal right to ask that the child support payments be reduced, now that we have two children of our own? Although she gave up guardianship, can she be held responsibile for some level of support now that she has an income? Also, the grandmother has since fallen ill, so it is possible that she will be unable to care for the children in the near future. In the event of her untimely death, will we be the childrens' beneficiary, or will the biological mother?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Maryland child support
MD has income-based guidelines which are used to determine the amount of support each parent must provide for their children. Since the mother in your case was unemployed at the time that amount was set, the fact that she now has income could be the basis for a modification of the award. Of course, if your husband's income has increased since that time, that might offset, at least in part, the mother's income. Each parent has a responsibility to support their children.
As to your last question, I assume you were asking about who might gain custody if the grandmother dies. Your husband could ask for custody, and if the mother is currently deployed overseas, he may have a good chance of getting it. In a contested custody case, the court would give the children to the parent who can best care and provide for them.
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