Legal Question in Family Law in Tennessee
Insurance for minor children
In my divorce papers it states that my ex-husband is to provide insurance for the children thru his employer. The company he worked for pulled out of this area which has left him un-employed. He refuses to take out Cobra because of the price. When he lost his insurance he wrote me agreeing to cover what I am paying for the children's insurance thru my work. When after 6 months he had only given me $100 towards this bill I wrote and asked him to pay me what he agreed to. At this point he refused to pay anything and told me I was lucky that he has not reduced the child support because he refuses to find a job and stated he would ''ride'' the unemployment as long as he can.
Do I have any recourse since I do have it in writing that he would pay and can he get the support decreased since he is drawing unemployment?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Insurance for minor children
I would need more information to give you definite answers to your questions. However I can tell you that
1. Yes he has a right to seek a decrease because he has lost his job. It was not his fault. However he cannot "ride" unemployment and expect to reduce his child support. If he is deemed voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, the court will likely base his child support on his earning capacity, not his unemployment compensation.
2. The non-custodial parent is generally required to provide health insurance. If he does not and you provide it, it is not uncommon for the court to add an amount to his child support obligation to make up for your additional expense. However, the way your decree apparently reads, he may not be violating any court order and you need to decide, after speaking with counsel, if you wish to clarify his obligation to pay insurance for your child.
Good luck. Marc Reisman
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