Interim CS court appearance
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| Tue, 07-05-2005 - 1:34pm |
I have two big issues going on right now but will try to put them in two seperate posts to keep things as uncomplicated as possible ( which isn't easy ! )
Ex and I have been seperated since last August 27. I finally moved out because he refused ( we lived on a farm co-owned by his parents ) and life with him was just too unbearable to handle any more. I did not want to disrupt the kids too much so left a large percentage of the household belongings behind...I used all of my savings to buy myself new furnishings, etc. I was of course stupid enough to think that he would be paying me my share of what he kept a heck of a lot sooner so that I would not be broke.....here we are 10 months later and not a penny !!!
He absolutely refuses to pay any CS. His reasoning is that since he sees the kids 40% of the time, his dues are paid by buying them things when they are there, paying for sports, medical, etc. Yeah, right.
I have had to cash in all of my RRSPs to try to survive...that is now all gone. I have not been able to pay rent yet this month and my bills are all a month overdue.
In 10 months he has given me a grand total of $3,000 to help with bills..."out of the goodness of his heart".
I received a letter from his lawyer last month spelling out his "offer". What he is offering for our house, land and property is a joke, but that comes with the next post and the next problem. What he offered for CS was $250 a month for THREE children !!!
I was receiving $325 a month for my oldest daughter from my first marriage and that order was made back in 1997 !!
He claims, and has told his lawyer, that he grosses $23,000 a year. I know this is a load of crap because I was married to him for 14 years. His job wnet from employee to contract position in 1999...same job, same position, more pay anually...but now he runs a 'business' so claims it all back as expenses. He is claiming more than $33,000 per year as business expenses !!!!!! In 1998 and 1999 before the change in his contract, he grossed more than $50,000 on his income taxes...now all he is showing is $23,000 because of the creative accounting.
I finally got sick of all of the crap and have a court date this Friday for an interim support order. The problem now is how do I get the judge to see that his income is greatly understated on his tax forms??? If all the judge looks at his his current tax statement, his payments could be as low as $300 a month....if his actual income is used it would be about $900 a month.
His expense claims are assinine...he is claiming a home office even though he does not work from home and never has. He is claiming over $9,000 a year for vehicle expenses, even though he is not entitled to claim his daily drive to another city to the office ( his choice ) and he also uses this vehicle for personal use. he is trying to write off his medical and dental plan for he and the kids...even though that is a personal expense, not a business expense. The list of his ridiculous business expenses goes on and on...as I said, over $30,000 dollars worth. ( hotels, food, etc....even the ones when he is taking out his OW and staying in the city to sleep with her)
I have copies of his 1998, 1999 and 2003 income statments, showing that he went from more than $50,000 a year to $23,000 for the SAME job.
Is the judge going to look at all of this or is he going to get away with paying 1/3 of what he should be paying just because of what his current tax forms say???
Exactly what can I bring with me on Friday to make the judge see what is really going on?? Is anything I say going to make a difference or will he simply use the current tax statements?
Also, do you know if they will make him pay for the past 10 months that he refused to pay any CS???
Thanks for any help/advice !!!!

In general the cs should be less if he has them 40% of the time, vs if he had them every other weekend. But here is what I would do based on what you've said. I'd bring copies of everything you have (not your originals, but copies so you can give them to the judge). Write up a one page bullet point summary of the issues you have with his stated income including any things you think are weird or require further explanation from him. Put your copies of past income or other records behind your summary and make it neat and organized. For example, if one of your bullet points is regarding a 1999 income tax return say your point and then put "see 1999 income tax return, line xxC on page 2" for reference. I would do this because you never know how much time you'll get to talk, or if you will get cut off and interupted. If you have a package for the judge, then all you have to say "Judge, I have a number of concerns over his stated income and I have listed them here and included all the support I have, I'd like you to review it please." Your ex can interupt you but it's not likely he'll yell "Hey judge, don't read that" In your statement remember no ranting or complaining, just facts and questions.
Also, bring copies of any out of pocket child expenses like daycare, babysitting, healthcare, prescriptions, etc. Those expenses should be shared.
I think the back support is a separate issue, so I would write up a separate one page or less summary of that and state what was agreed to when you moved and what has happened since and any other information that seems unbiased and you think is relevant. The bottom line is you want the judge to see your side of things, and if you are organized and have a reasonable arguement, you should at least get your point across.
Do you have an attorney? An attorney can sometimes make a big difference because they know the ins and outs of the cs law, and this can be important when someone is trying to hide income.
In Red Deer they do not appoint a mediator to your case...I know that they do in Calgary. so although it is supposed to be the same sytem, it seems to run a little differently.
I know that they only allot 20 minutes for each case to be presented and if your case will take longer than that it will be held over to a second appearance.
I realize that in cut and dry cases figuring out CS is fairly simple, as you said, they look at the income of both parents and use the guidelines to determine the amount...end of story.
Our case however is not cut and dry.....no one's income is reduced by more than $30,000 a year for the same job and I hope to heck the judge sees that and will investigate it further.
If my kids are going to get screwed because my Ex is using some very imaginitive accounting there will be he** to pay.