Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Can FRO stop enforcing CS if....

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Can FRO stop enforcing CS if....

    It has been quite awhile since I last posted, however I am turning to this excellent community for guidance. Here is my situation.

    I have a signed separation agreement back in 2012 where I pay Child Support for my 3 university aged children, who were just starting at the time. I have agreed to pay both CS and SS.

    My agreement only states that CS would be reviewed as of a certain date, which has led to a costly 2 year mediation saga that never settled anything, as my ex wanted more CS money. It never went beyond disputes and she has since quieted down. I failed to have my agreement state that CS would end once kids were done school. I completely blame my lawyer for this as he felt it needed to be left open!! However I digress.

    As of today, 1 child is done school and has obtained a great F/T position out of town and has now started his career as of March 1. CS over for sure.

    The second child just finished her program, will take 2 summer part time courses while employed for the summer and in September will move out of town with her fiancee and commence F/T employment. She will be done. Not sure if CS is over for this one now or not.

    My last child has one final year and hasn't lived with either of his parents for the past 2 years, and yet I continue to pay CS as per my agreement.

    My ex wants more SS to compensate for ending of CS and I said no way, as she has to prove additional entitlement and just because CS ends doesn't mean SS automatically goes up. There are a long thread that I started about this some time ago, so no need to delve into that point, but may be relevant in my question.

    According to the FRO, I can fill out a form asking for support to end and they will review. From what I can tell, the FRO will then send the request to my ex and if she doesn't agree CS should end, the FRO will continue to enforce it. Is that true? What if I provide absolute proof that they are done school and working full time? Does that not matter?

    I am almost certain my ex will not agree because she wants more SS to compensate for this. And if I interpret the FRO correctly, can she collect CS indefinitely so long as she keeps disagreeing that CS should end? Does that mean my only way is to spend thousands more in costly arbitration or court costs simply to end what is an obvious relief of my CS obligation?

    This seems ludicrous!! Any advice would be appreciated.

  • #2
    Yes you can have FRO send her the form. I think she has to provide them with school info. You might want to check with your case worker. I dont have the form with me to say whats on it but Im almost positive she has to prove they are still children under the divorce act. Important part? FRO will withhold payment until she responds.

    You can also file a motion to end support. This will involve the court process and probably be a pain but its definite and you could also kibosh the ss request.

    Best to get FRO on the case first to stop that and then take other action. Ill check the form my partner got when I get home.

    Comment


    • #3
      Thanks a lot Rockscan. Gives me some comfort in knowing that there may be a simpler way out. That said, I don't think I could file a court motion as the issue resolution provisions in my agreement say we will deal with issues directly, or via counsel's assistance, or via mediation/arbitration which has gotten us nowhere.

      I do fear that going the FRO route may contravene the agreement?

      Comment


      • #4
        It doesnt matter what your agreement says. The kids are no longer kids according to the divorce act and therefore no longer eligible for support. Shes breaking the law and will owe you money.

        You email her and advise her that you will be sending FRO notice that kid 1 is no longer eligble, kids 2&3 will cease at x date. They will be sending her forms to respond. Should she fail to provide honest accurate information you will be filing a motion with the court and requests costs.

        Comment


        • #5
          This is the form:

          Comment


          • #6
            Remember too that your agreement doesnt say she can keep cs as ss. She would have to get you to agree or file a motion. If she doesnt reply to fro honestly it shows bad faith and blame worthy conduct.

            Comment


            • #7
              Thanks Rockscan. Much appreciated. I will fill in the form, and contact FRO tomorrow. It would be awesome if they allow me to suspend CS right away while they investigate. In fact, my son who has left school 5 months ago was surprised I was still paying his mom CS money for him.

              Comment


              • #8
                Also, from your comment "Important part? FRO will withhold payment until she responds.". Does that mean I will not have to pay FRO during this time?

                Comment


                • #9
                  I think you still have to pay. Double check with your case worker.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    When my husband talked to FRO they sent him the form. Before they even sent it they told him to stop making payments and they put a hold on the funds they already had that had not been disbursed yet. When his ex did not respond to the form (she knew the child was done school), they sent him a cheque for the funds that had been hold.

                    He only had one child he was paying CS for. In your case they may want to make an arrangement for payments for your youngest child.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Thanks for the info. I do have a more complex situation in that 2 of the 3 are done full time school, while the 3rd has lived on his own for the past 2 years with financial assistance from me, despite me paying his mother CS.

                      I was worried sick that, according to the FRO website, I could be paying CS for decades unless I went to arbitration or court to get an end to CS. It seems very unfair that one would continue to pay CS to his ex when kids are long done school only because they couldn't afford the legal costs associated with trying to get a change.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        They may advise you to pay a lesser amount until it's sorted out. "No longer a child of the marriage" is pretty clear. And... if you have overpaid for the other 2 children, they can reduce the support for the 3rd child so you can get your overpayment back

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by paris View Post
                          When my husband talked to FRO they sent him the form. Before they even sent it they told him to stop making payments and they put a hold on the funds they already had that had not been disbursed yet. When his ex did not respond to the form (she knew the child was done school), they sent him a cheque for the funds that had been hold.

                          He only had one child he was paying CS for. In your case they may want to make an arrangement for payments for your youngest child.


                          This is interesting. My partner requested the form last fall and was going to send it as his kid wasnt living at home. He didnt send it as he got a job a few days later and his cs went up over the amount he was paying. He started paying the higher amount and they said they would only release the cs amount in the order on file (he expected his ex to advise FRO--she hasnt yet). So would FRO have been withholding all those monthly payments?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Yes. FRO is sitting on those funds.

                            Why did he start paying more when he got a job if kid wasn't living at home?

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              He has two kids. CS for one kid was more than what the order said. He had called them in december and asked what was happening with the extra money over the order amount and if his ex had contacted him. They said no she hadnt and they were holding back the extra $80 a month so maybe they are still paying her...

                              Comment

                              Our Divorce Forums
                              Forums dedicated to helping people all across Canada get through the separation and divorce process, with discussions about legal issues, parenting issues, financial issues and more.
                              Working...
                              X