Legal Question in Family Law in Oregon

Re: child support problem

YOUR QUESTION:

If you pay child support, and you have custody of that child, and the mother is not working or paying support. How do you get your money back? They took $3,300, when i had our child and full custody, now they say they ''the government'' do not have to pay it back, is that legal?

ANSWER:

Yes, under the circumstances you describe, that is legal. In hindsight, you should have taken action to terminate your child support obligation immediately upon the child's coming to live with you.

Under Oregon law, each installment of child support as it falls due becomes a "final judgment" that, as a general rule, cannot be retroactively modified. While the child support enforcement authorities will not at this point give you any help, you might consider a lawsuit directly aginst the other parent under a legal theory of "unjust enrichment" to the extent of money you paid to her during the child was living with you.

But, again, in hindsight, the problem is in large part due to your own failure to take legal action in a timely manner to protect your financial rights.

L.D. Gorin