Child Support Modifications In Maryland

If you have recently been subject to a divorce or paternity action, you may have a child support agreement in place that requires you to pay a certain amount of child support to the child’s other parent. But what happens when your circumstances significantly change, such as the loss of a job? In those cases, the Maryland courts permit individuals to make modifications to existing child support arrangements. In this article, the Maryland child support lawyers at Schlaich & Thompson, Chartered, will discuss how child support modifications are made, when the court will grant them, and how to pursue them in the State of Maryland.

Reasons for requesting a child support modification 

The Maryland courts won’t just let you alter an existing agreement that serves the interests of the children and the other parties involved. You have to prove that there has been a substantial change in “material” circumstances to warrant making changes to an already-existing agreement. “Material” means that the change is relevant to the situation. The court will require evidence of a change in circumstances, needs, financial condition, or something else to modify the existing agreement.

Common reasons that child support modifications are authorized include:

• There has been a major change to the paying parent’s employment situation. For example, they may have lost a job, had their hours reduced, gone on disability, or require medical care.
• The paying parent is in jail or prison and is expected to be there when they have to pay child support.
• The paying parent has become permanently disabled and can no longer work to support themselves or their children.
• The paying parent is spending significantly more time with the children than they did when the order was first ratified.
• The medical, schooling, or other needs of the child have significantly changed and require more support than is authorized by the existing order.

Again, the courts will only consider a modification when there has been a “material” change in circumstances. When it comes to income changes, the court will consider the change to be “material” when there has been a 25% increase or reduction in the amount of income the paying party receives.

What about handshake agreements to increase child support? 

If you want your agreement to have the weight of the court behind it, you will need to petition the court to make the modifications to the existing order. If you don’t, then the court will not enforce any agreement you make orally with your former partner. You don’t want this to happen.

Often, you and your former spouse can reach a mutually acceptable agreement when it comes to altering an existing order. You still need to present the agreement to the judge, and the judge still needs to sign off on the agreement. In most cases, it helps to have a lawyer file the modification for you and argue why your circumstances have materially changed to justify modifying an already-reached agreement.

Talk to a Maryland Child Support Attorney Today 

Need to petition the court for a modification of a child support agreement? If so, the Bel Air family law attorneys at Schlaich & Thompson, Chartered can help you through the process. Call our office today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin answering any questions you may have regarding child support modifications.