Custody issue/court order and OR interview

Needsassistance

Tricky one here,
I have a step son with my wife, and for 5 years we have been back and forth to a US court in a custody battle with her ex who lives in California. So now I have my interview next week with the OR. We have a court order which basically sets out custody which involves my wife having to fly to escort our 7 yr old boy from East coast US to West coast US during school holidays.

Im at a loss how to explain this in the OR interview, we have to fork out this amount every 8 weeks or so, which cant be varied.
How do they deal with this, Ive got evidence of the court order (tons of paper) its not lies so how do they deal with this?

I cant jsut say sorry we're broke, as the court in California will probably say oh well he should be with his dad, which they cant just let do can they?

dalip

No sure what you are asking but we had a poster a while back......forget who......who had to pay for his sons flights from abroad for visits. As far as i can remember the OR allowed the amount in his i&e. If thats not what you were asking i am sorry:o. If that is what you wanted to know maybe one of the other regulars might remember who it was.Dx

Round_The_Bend

Hi,

I think that I'm the poster to whom Dalip was referring. My son lives in the U.S. and the contact order was issued by the U.S. courts.

Your post has me confused, however. Are you currently living in the US, since you state that your wife has to escort her son from the East Coast to the West Coast every eight weeks? Is your wife also applying for bankruptcy because if she is not, then it could complicate matters with the OR, I imagine?

Assuming that the custody order was issued in the US, which state issued the custody order as the laws governing custody, child support, contact, etc., vary extensively depending upon which state issues the order? This could be important in terms of varying the current order. Why too is your wife having to pay for travel costs back and forth across the US? This order is usually discretionary.

If you can post a few more details, clarifying the situation a little more clearly, I may be able to offer some advice.

I appreciate that posting more specific information may be a sensitive issue, so please feel free to PM me if that helps.

Round_The_Bend

Right, I've just had a look at your other posts and see that you are currently living in the U.S., which helps to explain things a little more clearly.

My OR did allow the child support amount that was ordered by the US courts, despite it being considerably higher than if it had been assessed by the CSA in the UK. However, I had to provide a copy of the child support order and of the contact order, which provided for contact several times a year. As the non-custodial parent, the US courts ordered me to cover the cost of all travel for my son (and for me until he was old enough to fly as an 'unaccompanied minor'). The OR allowed me £1200 per annum to cover air fares, which didn't cover the entire cost but since I'm on an IPA, I can pay the excess from my surplus.

Because it is your stepson, it is possible that the OR may view things slightly differently but you should still try to include it in your household expenditure. You may actually find that financially you're better off once you go bankrupt, so funding the travel costs may be easier than is the case now. If not, why are you under the impression that the original order cannot be varied and why does your wife have to pay all the travel costs? Normally the US family courts are very heavily weighted in favour of the mother, particularly on the East Coast, so I would think it unlikely that custody would revert to the father, unless your wife is guilty of the most heinous of behaviours. Based upon what you have written, this seems unlikely.

Hope this helps but feel free to post more questions or PM me.

dalip

Thankyou RTB :A. I am sorry i did not remmber exactly who you were:o,but thanks for "lurking" and replying. Thats what this forum is all about.. Hope all is good with you.Dx

Round_The_Bend

dalip wrote: »

Thankyou RTB :A. I am sorry i did not remmber exactly who you were:o,but thanks for "lurking" and replying. Thats what this forum is all about.. Hope all is good with you.Dx

Cheers. Dalip. This is one area that I've got LOTS of personal experience...unfortunately, so hopefully I will be able to provide some support and assistance. It gives me nightmares just thinking about what the poster and his wife must be going through. The American family court system can be truly horrendous both emotionally and financially .

dalip

Yea and you are a treasure. Hope the OP comes back and gets back to you. Thankyou so much. Just really embarrassed i did not remember who you were,hope you forgive me lol.XXX

Round_The_Bend

Needsassistance wrote: »

Tricky one here,
I cant jsut say sorry we're broke, as the court in California will probably say oh well he should be with his dad, which they cant just let do can they?

I just saw this last bit, suggesting that the order was issued in California. Based upon my knowledge of US family courts, California has some of the most progressive laws governing children in the US and this probably explains why your stepson's father has a relatively generous order. Be that as it may, if you can't realistically afford the travel costs, then you can either file for a variation to the original order or try to negotiate a variation with the biologocal father. In terms of the former, most law firms offer an initial free or low-fee consultation, which migh be worth considering. Alternatively the court house in California may offer pro bono advice to explain your options.

Unless you wilfully and repeatedly flouted the original court order, it is highly unlikely that the courts would change the current custody arrangements. California prides itself on trying to act in the best interests of the child and this usually requires significant mediation before firm orders are made.

Being that you're five hours behind, I guess that you originally posted during your lunch break and probably won't see the responses until around 10-11 p.m. U.K. time. I'll check tomorrow and try to respond to any further questions in the morning so that you can get them when you get up.

Hope this helps.

Round_The_Bend

dalip wrote: »

Yea and you are a treasure. Hope the OP comes back and gets back to you. Thankyou so much. Just really embarrassed i did not remember who you were,hope you forgive me lol.XXX

No worries, Dalip. The boards are so busy at the moment that I'm finding it impossible to keep track of who everybody is and what's been posted. It's a sign of the times, I guess.