Colorado family court considers all parents legally obligated to provide for their child financially. In addition to making child custody decisions in a manner that meets the standard of a child’s best interests, a parent’s obligation to pay child support is legally binding and enforceable.
Once the court orders child support for divorced or non-married parents, the paying parent must remain current on their payments. If an ex-spouse falls significantly behind and refuses to pay their arrears, they have legal recourse available to them through Colorado’s child support enforcement measures. Contact our child support lawyer in Denver for a free consultation.
Reporting Child Support Arrears In Colorado
When an ex-spouse doesn’t pay child support, the first step is to report the late payment or payments to the state’s child support services program. You should carefully document evidence by gathering the original court order and writing down the last payment date and the dates of all missed payments. Keep copies of any communication you had with your ex-spouse and the child support service program about the arrearage. This evidence may be required in court if the spouse in arrears doesn’t make up their missed payments.
If reporting the arrearage doesn’t resolve the issue, the state begins enforcement measures. Enforcement starts with wage garnishment and other corrective measures, but can lead to criminal penalties through a conviction for contempt of court.
How Does the Colorado Child Support Enforcement Process Work?
Colorado has several methods of child support enforcement, beginning with the least legally authoritative measures and escalating to criminal charges. In typical cases, child support enforcement measures proceed as follows:
- Withholding income: A court may order wage garnishment to withhold a portion of the parent’s income to make up the arrearage. The court may continue to apply a wage garnishment to ensure the payment goes directly to the recipient’s account each month.
- Intercepting payments: the court may intercept tax refunds, unemployment benefits, and lottery or gambling winnings to make up the arrearage.
- Suspending licenses: If further enforcement measures are required, the state may suspend the parent’s recreational licenses, such as fishing and hunting licenses. Then, professional and driver’s licenses are subject to revocation as child support enforcement measures.
- Seizing assets and placing liens against property: The court may authorize liens against a paying parent’s real estate property and seize assets such as bank accounts.
- Contempt of court charges: imprisonment is a last resort because it interferes with the paying parent’s earning ability, but the court may pursue a contempt of court conviction against the parent in child support arrears. A conviction can result in fines, penalties, and imprisonment.
There are many reasons why a parent may fail or refuse to pay their court-ordered child support, but they may not legally cease paying. Instead, they must file a motion for modification if they have had a substantial, long-term change in circumstances.
What are the Long-Term Consequences of Refusing to Pay Child Support?
An ex-spouse with over $2,500 in child support arrearage is at risk of passport revocation to prevent them from fleeing the country. When an ex-spouse refuses to pay child support, it not only places them at risk of contempt of court charges and a potential prison sentence, but it also has long-term negative consequences on their credit rating and criminal record.