Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia
Emancipation and child support
My husband has legal sole custody of 17yr son. Son has lived with mom for 1 yr. Son now has apt in girlfriend's name, full-time job (working for my husband's business) and has gotten GED. Can we have son emancipated and file for motion to amend support? We have custody of his sister who lives with us. We pay $84 per mo. for him. (Difference between split custody amt. court ordered in July,2001) We have not paid the $84 per mo due to paying for son's car rprs and dental bills (total $1000 so far) Is husb.going to jail for non-pay?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Emancipation and child support
Firt, it's not up to you to emancipate your husband's son. Emancipation may come from certains actions initiated by the minor,and, may in fact have already occurred. However, whether emancipation has actually occurred may require a ruling from the court. In the meantime, if your
husband has not been paying the amount of child support ordered by the court, he's technically in contempt and could face sanctions. Paying for the
son's dental bills and car repairs in lieu of the
support won't pass muster in terms of complying with the court-ordered ogligation unless approved by the court.