Mediation Agreement (Texas)

[redneck]

Well here's my story.  Through mediation my spouse and I reached an agreement on child custody and support.  It was not at all what I wanted, nor what I believe is best for my son.  I was fighting for joint custody with myself as primary.  I've a ton of evidence showing her being neglectful to our son in the months after the seperation began, all the way up to the very day she found out I was going to fight custody, when she suddenly in 1 day became the model parent.  For 3 months I had my son ANY time I was not at work, by her demands, not that I minded.  On numerous occasions when I came from work and she was not there, she would have our son out till 12:30-2:00 at night.  I have solid evidence of this including recorded conversations with her mentioning what time ect.  She was having an affair beginning about 3 months before she wanted divorce, for which I have evidence.  She had our son around this man within 1 month of seperation.

I make 10x her income.  In the agreement I will have our son slightly more than half the time.  I will be paying $1200 month child support.  She is currently in graduate school with a teachers aid job making $1000 month, not enough to support herself.  And yet everytime I see her she's wearing new clothes, buying new furniture for her apartment, and occasionally even buys something for our son.  We lived quit well in marriage, yet in divorce her standard of living has improved, our son's has deteriorated.  She rents a one bedroom apartment with no extra space for our son, at my apartment I've rented a two bedroom to provide a room for our son.  I'm in need of new furniture but the first thing I've bought was a playhouse/bed for my son's room and a television so he can watch all the programs he had always watched before.

I could go on and on, I'm sure many here can relate to that.  To shorten it up:

1)  By paying $1200 month to her, my son's standard of living is actually caused to worsen.
2) $1200 month is Texas maximum, yet I have him a little more than half the time.

And the last one with my question
3) I signed this agreement in mediation.  I was heavily pressured into accepting this by the mediator.  I bluntly stated that there was no way I could make such an important agreement in the span of a 4 hour mediation.  The mediator told me that if I don't agree now that we would both leave, become angery at each other, and most likely not agree.  I was told it would then go to the court and the judge would likely give me visitation 2 days every other week instead of half the time.

Can this agreement, which has been signed but not finalized, be voided.  If so, should I try to void it or should I wait till she gets out of school and can support herself, then try to reverse the custody and/or support.

I'm not trying to get out of supporting my son.  I'm trying to provide the same standard of living, financially that he had previously.  I'd GLADLY give him 60+% of what I make.  It kills me to see the way she spends HIS money.  It kills me that I am so limited as to what I can provide for him due to the child support the she is using as spousal support at her own discretion.  She currently has employable that would gross about $40k year, but choses otherwise.  I don't want really to have her living in poverty as my son will have to be there half the time.
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[Peanutsdad]

Until a mediation agreement in Texas has been signed by a judge, you can back out. IF the judge has already signed it, it isnt a mediation agreement anymore- it's a court order.

[patton]

Another thing Texas passed a new family code law in September 2001, if a parent makes child support payments in excess ( I think it's $600 a month) the custodial parents MUST furnish on demand an accounting of where all the money is being spent on the child.

You need to look up this law, have you attorney look it up and be sure it is put into your court order if you end up being the non custodial parent.

You also have a PM.

[gipsy]

You wrote that you make 10X her wages then mentioned that she Makes $1,OOO PER MONTH  ,  That sounds like You would get that child support amount established at court Any way ,But on the other hand it sounds like you did great on parenting time , My two cents . What could be better than getting that much time with your son ? After what I have seen . If I made 10x Her income , I would take the agreement , BUT In Washington state All custody decree's "not heard by a Judge " Are  Orders that can be challenged , Then again , It may behoove you too live with this for a year or what ever an atty recomends , That way tyou have established that she agreed to this parenting plan , And In wash state Parenting plans and custody are heard as separate Issue's . , SO In a  Amount of time decided By an atty and you Maybe challenge the support order , BUT I would ask an atty , Child support In wash state is based on what you make and what she makes , Then put into a ratio , So try to find out how child support is established , Calculate it . And see if its worth fighting . And yes you have the child more than half the time , But In wash state It would go the same way ,

[OchoaNow]

Would you help me find that family code?  My DH's ex would crap on herself if we asked for that!

[msme]

First of all, I hope you are documenting every minute are spending with him. How old is he? What part of Texas ar you in? I am up North by Wichita Falls. I know a great Lawyer up here who does travel south.
You never get a second chance to make a first impression!

[patton]

I sure thought this was put into law under the Texas family code, but I can't see it listed online.  

This is a wonderful website to keep up on all the new bills and laws being discussed in the Texas Legislature sessions.


http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/


 

By West                                                H.B. No. 336
         77R1830 JMG-D                          
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the creation of a separate account for the deposit of
 1-3     child support payments.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 154, Family Code, is
 1-6     amended by adding Section 154.0041 to read as follows:
 1-7           Sec. 154.0041.  SEPARATE ACCOUNT.  (a)  The court shall order
 1-8     the obligee to open a separate child support account with a
 1-9     financial institution solely for the receipt and use of child
1-10     support payments if monthly child support payments are in an amount
1-11     equal to or greater than $600.  The court shall provide in the
1-12     order that the account is established in a manner that complies
1-13     with this section.
1-14           (b)  If the court orders the payment of child support to the
1-15     Title IV-D agency, a local registry, or the state disbursement
1-16     unit, the Title IV-D agency, local registry, or state disbursement
1-17     unit shall electronically transfer the child support payments to
1-18     the financial institution for placement in the separate child
1-19     support account.
1-20           (c)  The obligee shall notify the obligor and the Title IV-D
1-21     agency, local registry, or state disbursement unit on or before the
1-22     date the first child support payment is due that the obligee has
1-23     opened a separate child support account and shall furnish the
1-24     obligor and the Title IV-D agency, local registry, or state
 2-1     disbursement unit with the name of the financial institution and
 2-2     the account number.
 2-3           (d)  The obligor is responsible for the costs of the separate
 2-4     child support account.
 2-5           (e)  The obligee and obligor each have access to account
 2-6     records and statements.
 2-7           (f)  Account records and statements are subject to subpoena.
 2-8           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001, and
 2-9     applies only to a court order providing for the payment of child
2-10     support entered on or after that date.  A court order entered
2-11     before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law as it
2-12     existed immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that
2-13     law is continued in effect for that purpose.