Child Support - Ramsey County Minnesota

[bbtb5]

after 6 months of trying to collect child support for 3 children, Ramsey county has declined to pursue our case.  The children were removed from their mothers permanent custody in June of 2002.  We were awarded Joint Legal and sole physical custodians of these children.  A temporary stipulation was in place from June '02 until Aug. '03.  In this stipulation, there was an agreement to reserve child support.  This wording was not changed when the stipulation was made permanent.  We requested that Ramsey county pursue this for us in Oct. '03, retroactive from Aug. '03.  We found out today, after providing much information and even being told 2 weeks ago that we would receive the proposal in the mail shortly, that her lawyer drafted a letter stating that there has been no change in circumstances and child support is not warrented.  Isn't being awarded permanent physical custody a change in circumstance?  Can she go without paying any child support at all.  If this were her asking for support we would have been bled dry long ago.  Where do we go from here, we have a call into our lawyer, but it is New Years Eve.  Any advice.

[socrateaser]

You probably have an answer from your attorney by now, but if the award of permanent custody was made final at the same time as the award of support (i.e., Aug 03), then you must show a change in circumstances subsequent to that date, i.e., a change in your income or the income of the other parent.

[bbtb5]

the topic of child support was 'reserved' in the temporary and permanent orders.  We have never received support from her. We are now requesting to recieve child support.  We must still show a change in circumstance.  Doesn't she have to support the children if she does not currently do so.  I would think this would be the children's entitlement.  

[socrateaser]

The right of support is the child's, however when you stipulate to a judgment and the court signs it, it's final, and the court has determined that the order of no support at the time of judgment is in the child's interest.

Now, you have the burden of showing that something has changed since final judgment to warrant a support modification. The court will entertain almost anything, but it must be substantial enough to show that the child is now in a worse position than at the time of final judgment.

I don't know the facts of your case, so I can't comment further about what you would allege.