When someone is behind in child support or alimony (a/k/a spousal maintenance) payments, the back amount owed is called arrears. The most common way for someone to pay arrears is to add twenty percent (20%) to any ongoing support payments.
Minnesota Divorce & Family Law Blog
The Minnesota Divorce & Family Law Blog, published by Williams Divorce and Family Law, covers various aspects of family law with a focus on divorce-related issues in Minnesota. Topics include child support and alimony arrears, the tax implications of spousal maintenance payments, and the legal distinctions between parenting time and child support obligations. The blog also discusses alternative dispute resolution methods such as mediation and collaborative law, as well as procedural matters like name changes during divorce. It addresses both the financial and emotional components of family law cases, providing practical insights into the legal processes and obligations of divorcing parties.
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Latest from Minnesota Divorce & Family Law Blog
Spousal Maintenance Payments Are Not Deductible From Taxable Income
Before December 31, 2018, if you paid alimony, you could deduct it from your taxable income; and if you received alimony, you had to include it in your taxable income. Both of those treatments of alimony were changed when the…
Interesting Perspective on Divorce, Mediation and Collaborative Law
“Divorce is 80 percent emotional, 10 percent legal and 10 percent financial.” This is the quote that rings most true to me in an article posted by the New York Times, “Can Divorce Be Affordable? Yes, but Only if Spouses…
Independence of Provisions for Parenting Time and Child Support
When separated parties co-parent children, there is a basic premise that both parties have the right to parenting time and the obligation to provide financial support. All parents – custodial, non-custodial, and joint custodial – are presumed to be entitled…
Name Change in Divorce
When a couple gets divorced, both parties have an opportunity to change their name. Either party may change their name, whether or not they have been known by one or more names previously. A party changing their name must confirm…
Summary Real Estate Disposition Judgment
Minn. Stat. Section 518.191 provides for the family court to issue a Summary Real Estate Disposition Judgment (SREDJ) as a brief document separate from a divorce decree. The SREDJ can be filed with the county recorder in lieu of a…
Move Out of State
When a couple divorces or separates, and has no children in common, then either party is free to move, or live, where they choose and/or where they can afford to live. If the parties have no minor children (children under…
25% Parenting Time
Minnesota does not have a statute that mandates a presumption of 50-50 custody. The fact is, with or without a statutory presumption, 50-50 custody is common and, I believe, getting more and more common over time. What Minnesota statute does…
Reasonable Preference of the Child
One of the statutory factors that the family court must consider in child custody cases is the reasonable preference of the child, if the court deems the child to be of sufficient ability, age, and maturity to express an independent,…