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Dear all
I am paying £150 spousal (support) and £150 child(23) maintenance for my 23 yr old autistic son.
My ex wife receives £600 per month carer and independent living allowance.
The judge ruled 2 years ago that I had to pay this.
My financial circumstances have changed dramatically
Can I apply to vary this.
(She has been cohabiting for 6 years with a very rich man)
Thanks
Hi there
If your financial situation has changed, yes you can apply to have the order varied.
Where there is a court order in place for child maintenance this can usually be overridden, after the court order has been in place for longer than 12 months. by Either parent opening a claim with the CMS.
You could look at separating the two, by opening a claim for child maintenance directly with the CMS... I’m not sure if that would be possible, because of your child’s age, but I think that CM and child benefit can continue to be paid to the resident/receiving parent, after a child has reached the age of 20 where there are exceptional circumstances.
All the best
Many thanks for you answer .
I will be contacting CMS today concerning this.
Re the eldest child(23) he receives circa £450 per month disability allowance and his mum £300(approx) carers allowance .
He is not physically handicapped and can get dressed etc and goes to a centre(usedtogo on the bus on his own (special needs bus) to college.
A judge ruled this and spousal maintenance for my ex £150 each per month (apparently it can be given).
My ex dad employed a head of chambers barrister and spent near £200k in all (crazy as I didn’t have that much money!!)
I was thinking my eldest son was child maintenance and would ask CMS for pro rata continuance??
Thanks for you help and any other you can give
Goodness me, the ex’s Dad would have been better served giving the mother and child the £200K and coming to an equitable arrangement with you! Crazy...
Are the two separate payments (spousal and child) specified in the order?
I’m not sure how it would work if the two amounts are combined and not specified as two separate amounts on the order.
It’s bizarre that she was cohabiting at the time of your last court case and the judge still saw fit to make an award to her for spousal payments... unfortunately, the financial and child maintenance side of things isn’t my area of knowledge. It might be worth seeking some legal advice, some solicitors offer a free initial consultation.
Here’s a link to some further advice, I think this is still running... give it a try.
All the best
I think CMS don't apply here - your child is 23 and autistic, so presumably has special needs, and presumably the fact that he gets benefits and your ex gets carers allowance would reinforce this. The CMS don't deal with these situations, the court order will prevail to the best of my knowledge. I'm not sure how the court would view co-habitation, if she was married, then your spousal support would end almost certainly, so it may be however the judge is feeling on the day.
Yes the judge(who has an autistic grand child) on the day awarded £150 spousal and £150 to my son(23)
My ex wife gets all caters etc and sons get full allowances.
Cms said not to pay.
Can I apply for variance (she lived with her millionaire boyfriend for 6 years now) and has about 3k a month and pays out none except food for 2 adults 2 kids
mojo has much more experience than me on applying for a variance and court procedures in general, and has advised above that you can apply for a variance - I'd definitely go with that advice 🙂
Hi
Yes the amounts are separated in the court order
Child maintenance for my two youngest
Spousal £150 per month
£150 for my eldest son(autistic)
My ex had been cohabiting for 3 years at the time and had the same money per month(actually more 4K)
Plus it showed her saving considerable amounts per year)
On my current income I could vary and definitely have an argument that her standard of living is better.
It looks like I will have to apply for variation on spousal and my eldest on earnings hoping to get them reduced to £1 each
Her barrister quoted me as paying 81% of my income at the last court appearance and the judge still awarded this monies and made me pay 20k in arrears(I reduced her payment from £1500-£750 after her cohabitation and my eldest daughter turning 19.
The judge included the £300 spousal and eldest in the arrears so it had built up.
Would the variation be on circumstances rather than the argument that it is incorrect.
Thanks
I would cite both to be honest. Hopefully it will be a different judge that is more reasonable. Paying 81%of income is untenable and unfair in my opinion.
What did the CMS say?
I have applied through cms and they will work out the amount I should pay.
I assume they will try and re visit the court but my understanding is that the judge will return the child maintenance to the cms.
If they do I will apply for variance on spousal and for my eldest.
I will notify them of this potential action before and see if they accept a compromise.
Their appetite for using lawyers has slowed(they spent £45k on barristers in family court over tea times etc!!) but last time did not send one (schools ) and in all family matters my ex has been told off by the magistrates for obstruction.
I will wait and see as she has been contacted by cms (I received my confirmation this week) and let you know
Thanks for all your help
You're welcome, I just wish I had more experience of your situation that I could share with you.
Please do keep us updated, best of luck.
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