A divorce agreement is not set in stone, and neither is a divorce ruling — especially when it comes to children. Life circumstances of two ex-spouses could change, making a child support, child custody or parenting plan subject to change. This article will look at several scenarios that could result in child support modification by a Tennessee court.
Jobs are not constant, and a Tennessee parent could lose his or her job in a heartbeat. That means that economic circumstances are not constant either. Losing a job could dramatically affect a mother or father’s ability to pay child support at the level the court currently requires.
If a parent suffers a dramatic change in economic circumstances for the worse, then he or she will want to speak with a family law attorney immediately to file a petition to modify his or her child support obligations in order to make them affordable again.
The needs of a child can change over time. If a child suddenly develops an illness or infirmity that requires extra money to be spent on his or her care, the current amount of child support being paid by the other parent may not be sufficient enough to cover these additional costs.
In such cases, the parent receiving child support can petition the court to request an increase in the amount of child support the other parent is obligated to pay. Additionally, if one or the other ex-spouses has a significant change in lifestyle — like he or she suddenly starts to earn a lot more money at work — then the ex-spouse who is receiving child support money may have the ability to ask the court to award an increase.
Speaking with a Tennessee divorce attorney is an excellent way to evaluate whether or not a particular situation would warrant a request for child support modification. An attorney can look at the facts of the case, review the income levels of the parent involved and determine the chances of a parent prevailing in this kind of legal matter.
