My family court experience:
In April 2013, after 18 months of marriage and abuse (being bullied, called fat, pushed around, assaulted, and enduring my wife's online sex antics with other men), I decided it would be best if I got a 700/month bachelor apartment for a while.
I was told by Social Services that I couldn't move our daughter from the marital home as it would be considered kidnapping. As my wife had never abused her, I couldn't legally move her from the home.
I told my wife I would pay the mortgage on the house in lieu of CS while we worked this out. She works and her Mother helped us with child care.
Three weeks after I moved out I was served with divorce papers and an application for child support for our daughter, exclusive possession of the MH, and for child support for her 3 kids from her first marriage.
No problem I thought. I'll explain to the judge I'm paying $1570/month for the house. Table 3 is 575/month, so that's $1000/month more than I'm required to pay.
Around comes the court date in June 2013. Before I opened my mouth I had been ordered not to access the MH, to pay $575/month table 3 support, plus I had to pay all the utility bills for the MH. The judge didn't even ask me to speak.
That's still not all that bad, right? Well, I happen to have two sons from a prior relationship. One son lived with me (age 20) and I pay $500/month in cs for my other son (16).
In addition we had developed the basement of the MH and the renovation loan was in my name. So I also carried the matrimonial debt.
Analysis:
My net pay is $3800.00/month and my monthly bills now total the following:
Mortgage Matrimonial Home - $1570.00
C/S 16 year old son - $500.00
new C/S order $575.00/month
utilities matrimonial home $500.00/month
marital debt $500.00/month
The family court system left me with about $150.00/month to live off since May 1, 2013. Not only that, the judge still wanted to determine if I "stood in the place of a parent" to my wife's 3 kids from her first marriage.
Even more child support would have been ordered had I not attended court in September 2013 to dispute her application.
The family court system decided I shouldn't be allowed to live in a $700/month bachelor apartment. So on October 1, 2013 I moved back home with my parents at the age of 45.
When I explained to my wife that I had no money she was only concerned that I hadn't been paying section 7 CS.
Justice prevailed, sort of, on January 6, 2014. My wife owns a rental property and I had learned her tenant moving on January 15/14.
I filed an application to vary the order that gave her exclusive possession of our matrimonial home. The judge asked her why she didn't want to move into her own house and she explained she'd have to move the kids (it's only 10 blocks away/no school change) and it wasn't in their "best interests".
Finally, a judge understood me and told her to move into her own house as soon as possible.
On February 1/14, I have my home back. The house I paid for and bought before I married my wife. I will need a couple of roommates to catch up on the bills but I will finally have a home where my daughter can visit me.
The last 10 months have been tough but my right to apply for shared parenting has been reserved. Hopefully, justice will eventually prevail and shared parenting will be the outcome.
I will follow up in the summer on the outcome of my shared parenting application but for all parents out there who are temporarily homeless during the separation process, there is hope.
In April 2013, after 18 months of marriage and abuse (being bullied, called fat, pushed around, assaulted, and enduring my wife's online sex antics with other men), I decided it would be best if I got a 700/month bachelor apartment for a while.
I was told by Social Services that I couldn't move our daughter from the marital home as it would be considered kidnapping. As my wife had never abused her, I couldn't legally move her from the home.
I told my wife I would pay the mortgage on the house in lieu of CS while we worked this out. She works and her Mother helped us with child care.
Three weeks after I moved out I was served with divorce papers and an application for child support for our daughter, exclusive possession of the MH, and for child support for her 3 kids from her first marriage.
No problem I thought. I'll explain to the judge I'm paying $1570/month for the house. Table 3 is 575/month, so that's $1000/month more than I'm required to pay.
Around comes the court date in June 2013. Before I opened my mouth I had been ordered not to access the MH, to pay $575/month table 3 support, plus I had to pay all the utility bills for the MH. The judge didn't even ask me to speak.
That's still not all that bad, right? Well, I happen to have two sons from a prior relationship. One son lived with me (age 20) and I pay $500/month in cs for my other son (16).
In addition we had developed the basement of the MH and the renovation loan was in my name. So I also carried the matrimonial debt.
Analysis:
My net pay is $3800.00/month and my monthly bills now total the following:
Mortgage Matrimonial Home - $1570.00
C/S 16 year old son - $500.00
new C/S order $575.00/month
utilities matrimonial home $500.00/month
marital debt $500.00/month
The family court system left me with about $150.00/month to live off since May 1, 2013. Not only that, the judge still wanted to determine if I "stood in the place of a parent" to my wife's 3 kids from her first marriage.
Even more child support would have been ordered had I not attended court in September 2013 to dispute her application.
The family court system decided I shouldn't be allowed to live in a $700/month bachelor apartment. So on October 1, 2013 I moved back home with my parents at the age of 45.
When I explained to my wife that I had no money she was only concerned that I hadn't been paying section 7 CS.
Justice prevailed, sort of, on January 6, 2014. My wife owns a rental property and I had learned her tenant moving on January 15/14.
I filed an application to vary the order that gave her exclusive possession of our matrimonial home. The judge asked her why she didn't want to move into her own house and she explained she'd have to move the kids (it's only 10 blocks away/no school change) and it wasn't in their "best interests".
Finally, a judge understood me and told her to move into her own house as soon as possible.
On February 1/14, I have my home back. The house I paid for and bought before I married my wife. I will need a couple of roommates to catch up on the bills but I will finally have a home where my daughter can visit me.
The last 10 months have been tough but my right to apply for shared parenting has been reserved. Hopefully, justice will eventually prevail and shared parenting will be the outcome.
I will follow up in the summer on the outcome of my shared parenting application but for all parents out there who are temporarily homeless during the separation process, there is hope.
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