Maintenance – Increasing/Reducing Maintenance

Question:

After a long battle my husband, who lives apart from us, he was ordered to pay me maintenance for two children. Recently, one of them has had a lot of dental trouble and requires costly on-going treatment.The other needs private lessons as he has fallen behind at school . These issues were not mentioned in the court’s judgment. How can I get money from my him to cover these ?

Answer:

You can make an application to the court for an increase in child maintenance. If you succeed in proving to the court that there has been a substantial change in circumstances, and that your children’s needs have grown, relative to all the other factors , then it may accept your plea, at least in part. Where a court has looked at the question of maintenance fully, and given its judgment, it will only alter it if there is a substantial change in circumstances.

Question:

Is it possible for a mother with custody to get more maintenance for her child if the father now earns more money and the child's needs have grown ?

Answer:

Yes. Getting an increase in child maintenance necessitates proving a substantial change in circumstances. A mother who is the custodial parent will have to prove to the satisfaction of the court that there has been a substantial change in circumstances compared to the situation when the original maintenance judgment was given, from the point of view of the father's income and the child's needs, both of which have increased

Question:

My husband and I agreed on maintenance for our children in our divorce agreement which was authorised at the rabbinical court. I agreed to a low sum to avoid further legal battles and at t he end of the agreement it “neither side has any further claims against the other".  I see now that  the maintenance is just not enough. I did not like the attitude towards me at the rabbinical court .

Is there any way of getting more money for them and going through the civil courts ?

Answer:

Yes – to both questions ! Firstly, even though child maintenance is agreed upon by the parents as part of their divorce agreement, this does not prevent their minors from making their own independent plea for maintenance, even if the wording used appears to make the sum final and include an undertaking not to file for an increase . This is because minor children are not sides to a divorce agreement made by their parents and maintenance judgments concerning child maintenance are never final. Where maintenance is 'agreed' upon by the parents rather than decided upon by the court there is never any real judicial discussion as to their needs anyway.

Secondly, if a minor makes his/her independent plea for maintenance – via his/her mother as the natural guardian – he/she is not bound to file it at the rabbinical court even if the divorce agreement was authorised there. The independent plea can be filed at a family court . This principle was established by the Supreme Court in the sixties in the Bronovsky case. There it ruled that the minor daughter was entitled to make her own plea for maintenance in the civil system via her mother even though her parents had their divorce agreement authorised – which covered maintenance too – at the rabbinical court.

Increased Temporary Maintenance At Preliminary Hearing

Question:

I receive low child maintenance set by the rabbinical court and have recently filed an independent maintenance plea on behalf of my children at the family court. I know there are big delays in court, but I was wondering if there is any chance of getting the maintenance increased on a temporary basis at any early stage ?

Answer:

Yes – a family court can set temporary maintenance which is above the sum previously set by a rabbinical court, even at an early stage in proceedings. For example, in June 2004, Kfar Saba Family Court received an independent plea for child maintenance for five children who were awarded 2,500 shekels a month by the rabbinical court in earlier proceedings. After the family court confirmed its own jurisdiction , which the father had disputed , at a preliminary hearing, it increased the maintenance the mother received for the children by 1,000 shekels a month. It examined various evidence submitted by both sides, discovered inconsistencies and contradictions, and held that the father’s income was in excess of what he claimed, and that the present sum received did not cover the needs of the five children.

Question:

When I divorced at the rabbinical court I was awarded custody of my our son and my husband was ordered to pay him maintenance. Recently, my son was seriously injured in a road accident . I was earning a good salary but have had to give up work permanently to look after him. There are now a lot of unexpected expenses because of the accident. What legal action, if any, can I take to finance all this ?

Answer:

Firstly, a minor child can file his father for an increase in his maintenance , via his mother who is his natural guardian. Where the mother can prove that since the accident there has been a substantial change in circumstances and an increase in his needs/expenses this would constitute grounds for an increase in his maintenance.

Secondly, the mother can file her ex-husband for money for caring for their son. Although it seems natural that a mother should look after any minor children under Jewish law she has no obligation to do so and if she does, she is entitled to demand payment for this from the child’s father.

Question:

Is it possible to appeal against a maintenance judgment given by a family court a few years previously ?

Answer:

No! The deadline for filing an appeal against a family court maintenance judgment is 45 days from the time it was received. In certain exceptional situations, application can be made for an extension of this deadline, but not where several years have elapsed. However, it may be worthwhile weighing up whether a plea to increase/reduce the maintenance set should be filed, if there has been a substantial change of circumstances since the judgment was made.

Question:

Under what circumstances will a court reduce the amount of child maintenance a father has to pay?

Answer:

To succeed in a plea to reduce maintenance a father pays a ‘substantial change in circumstances’ will have to be proved . The following are examples of situations which are regarded as substantial changes in circumstance :

It should be noted that only major and substantial changes will qualify, not small ones.

Question:

I have filed for a reduction in the amount of child maintenance I pay. Am I now entitled to just stop paying at all, or reduce the amount I pay ?

Answer:

No ! A party who has applied for a reduction in child maintenance is not entitled to take unilateral action regarding payments just because he has filed a plea in relation to this. It is possible, however, to file a temporary application within the framework of the plea to make reduced payments until the court makes a ruling.

Question:

Is a Jewish father entitled to refuse to pay child support because his Jewish wife, their mother, refuses to move back to Israel from overseas, where the family have been living, and the couple have dual Israeli and foreign nationality ?

Answer:

No ! If the father's obligation to pay maintenance to support his children while they are abroad, arises from a decision of a court, be it one in Israel or overseas, then he should respect it, if given according to law. He is not entitled to take the law into his own hands and refuse to pay his children maintenance ordered by court as a protest against his wife's behaviour. He can, however, consider taking legal action, in Israel, or abroad, depending on the circumstances, regarding his wife's refusal to return the minors to Israel.

Question:

Could a father be landed with a child maintenance judgment according to Jewish law, that leaves him without enough to support himself, whilst the mother has spare money left over from her salary ?

Answer:

Possibly, though if it happens in practice the father would have a chance of successfully appealing against such a decision, according to a judgment by Jerusalem District Court in February 2005 which overturned a family court maintenance ruling concerning a three year old child, saying that even Jewish law recognized the need for equity, although in principle it states that the sole obligation to provide the child's essential needs falls on the father until a minor is aged 15.

In this case the father had appealed against the judgment obliging him to pay 1,600 N.I.S. a month, plus half of the cost of the child's exceptional medical expenses, day care and afternoon activities. He also had to pay 2,800 N.I.S. a month maintenance for his children from his first marriage – and his current salary did not cover the two sums. The appeal court accepted the evidence presented by the father, who had previously earned more, but who now worked 6 days a week, with overtime, and could not get a higher paid job, and lived with his parents because he could not afford to support himself. It found that the mother earned nearly double what the father earned and had a "surplus" of c 2,500 shekels a month. Reducing the father's child maintenance to 1,200 N.I.S. a month , the court held that even the bible and Jewish law had equitable principles concerning acting in an "honest" and "good" way, and ordered the mother to participate in supporting the child financially.

Question:

I paid out child maintenance for over five years according to a court judgment. I transferred the money for the children to my 'ex' every month, although in practice the children stayed with me more than with her. If I bring legal action against her to get the maintenance back am I likely to succeed ?

Answer:

No ! Legal action for the return of maintenance paid out is likely to fail. The main reason for this is likely to be the fact that the father "slept on his rights" to file for a reduction in child maintenance . Had he done this – which was the correct legal option – at the right time, he would have had a good chance of succeeding because the children were in de facto joint custody of both parents.

Question:

Is it possible to file a retroactive plea for increased maintenance ?

Answer:

While in theory someone may file a retroactive plea for increase maintenance, it would almost certainly be rejected in practice. A plea for an increase in maintenance looks towards the future, and the person filing it must prove a substantial change of circumstances justifying it, since the previous sum was set. In general, when a maintenance plea is filed the obligation to pay it only starts from the date the plea was filed. This situation should be distinguished from the situation whereby maintenance is set, but never paid, in which case legal action can be taken to recover the unpaid maintenance debt, which will accrue linkage and interest, retrospectively.

Question:

I was awarded a maintenance judgment for my two children by the court. A global sum was set for both children until the end of their high school studies. My elder child is due to finish high school shortly . I know the maintenance I currently receive will be reduced. How much will my younger son be entitled to when the judgment makes no reference as to how the maintenance awarded is to be shared between them ?

Answer:

Where a global sum of maintenance is set for a number of children , unless it is stated otherwise, there is legal assumption that each of them is entitled to an equal share. Accordingly, where the obligation to provide maintenance for one child ends, then the original sum will be reduced by the relative share of that child . That is to say where a global sum is awarded for two children and one is no longer entitled to maintenance, the original figure will be reduced by half. Where a global sum is set for three children and one of them is no longer entitled to maintenance – the original sum will be reduced by a third

Question:

My teenage sons refuse to see me. I feel I am being exploited, being made to pay them maintenance while being deprived of my visitation rights. Do I have a legal obligation to support my sons if they refuse to see me ? We are all Jewish by the way.

Children cannot be forced by law to see their father , although a father does do have the right to see his sons and develop his relationship with them after divorce

Jewish law, however, does provide a sanction where children are unjustifiably rebellious - a reduction in their father’s maintenance obligation. Usually the court will order a qualified professional to investigate the family inter-relationships . A father’s maintenance obligation will only be reduced if it is proved that he is not responsible for his son’s refusal to see him – i.e. that the father’s behaviour is not causing the problem.

Question:

The family court set maintenance for my 4 year old son after a long battle. Now, a year later, my ex-husband has re-married and become a father again . He hinted to me that he will be applying for a reduction in child maintenance, although I heard from a mutual friend that he has recently been promoted at work. Will he succeed, and what can I do to stop him ?

Answer:

Firstly, where the court has discussed the whole issue of child maintenance fully,as opposed to where the parents agree between them, it will only alter its judgment if there is a substantial change in circumstances.

On the face of it, your ex-husband seems to have a good case for asking for a reduction in child maintenance; he has a new family to provide for. However, that is not everything. Firstly, you have a right to submit a defence to his claim, in which you can include any increases in your child’s needs, rent increases, extra childcare costs, reduction in salary (if you work) etc. Also, if you know that your ex-husband has had promotion and , with it, a salary increase, this should act in your favour. Both parties must declare details of their income when they make a maintenance application and his salary increase should show up.

Question:

Will a man who pays child maintenance according to his divorce agreement be entitled to pay less if his new wife has a baby ?

Answer:

Not every change in the family set-up results in a change in the amount of child maintenance paid, the Supreme Court has held. Where there is an agreement regarding child maintenance if the father applies for an decrease in the amount agreed upon following the birth of a child from his new marriage, the court will not automatically agree to this. Where the maintenance set is a relatively low sum it may not . In other cases, the birth of another child from a new marriage may justify reducing the maintenance.

Question:

I pay maintenance for two children from my first marriage. Can I apply to court for a reduction because the woman I live with and I have just had a child together ?

Answer:

A father who pays maintenance to children from his first marriage is entitled to apply for a reduction in what he pays following the birth of his child from another woman – whether he is married to the new mother or not. Whether he succeeds will, in part, depend on how much he currently pays the children from his first marriage and what his salary and/or earning capability is . The new baby is entitled to financial support, although priority will be given to the children from his first marriage. The new addition will be entitled to relatively low maintenance unless the father is in a good financial position .

Question:

I have lost my job in high-tech. I am in my thirties and divorced . I pay child maintenance. The court ordered me to pay very generous maintenance because I was on an excellent salary at the time and we lived very comfortably. Will I be entitled to pay much less child maintenance now that I am out of work ?

Answer:

Temporary job loss can result in some drop in child maintenance because of changed circumstances – but not a drastic one. So held Haifa District Court when it partially accepted an appeal by a woman against a drastic drop in maintenance for herself and her children ordered by the family court after the husband had lost his job. Following a plea by him to reduce the maintenance the family court axed it – leaving both the wife and the children with about half of the original amounts they had each been set. The District Court increased the reduced maintenance , saying that the husband’s temporary job loss had been given too much weight . He was relatively young (38) with a high earning potential. Too much weight had also been given to the fact that he now had other children to support as the woman he lived with had given birth – because she also had a good job in insurance.

Question:

The family court passed judgment ordering me to pay child maintenance for my daughter, including a third of the cost of the rent my ‘‘ex” pays for the apartment she lives in with her. A few months ago my ‘ex’ met a widower with a child. My ‘ex’ told me he is now planning to move in with her and our daughter. I said that this should mean that I would have to pay less towards the rent as more people would be living there and sharing the cost. She disagreed. Am I entitled to pay less towards rent in this case, and if so, what should I do ?

Answer:

Most probably. Where a maintenance judgment is given on the basis of a certain factual background then where this changes and more people live in the apartment , this is likely to result in legal cause for a plea to reduce the maintenance paid as the accommodation cost of each person living there will decrease.

Question:

For several years I have been paying my ‘ex’ child maintenance which includes 30% participation in the cost of her rent, according to a family court judgment. Sometime ago my ‘ex’ met a widower who also has a child. They wanted to live together but after he and his son moved in to my ‘ex’s rented apartment they decided it was too small and rented a big villa together. The rent is nearly three times what she was paying before. In these circumstances will I have to continue paying 30% of the rent – now that it is much higher ?

Answer:

A maintenance judgment is given on the basis of a certain factual background and a father who is obliged to contribute towards the accommodation costs of his minor daughter according to a certain percentage of the rent should not suffer because of his ex- wife’s desire for a luxurious lifestyle. It is her prerogative to live in upmarket accommodation, but her right to live there should not oblige him financially.

In this situation the father should file a plea for a reduction in child maintenance , referring to the accommodation element detailing the changes. In addition to emphasising the above argument he should stress that a greater number of people will be living together, a factor that in principle should reduce the relative accommodation costs of each individual.

Question:

I pay my children very generous maintenance every month, according to a divorce agreement made with my ex-wife which was authorised by the family court. I come from a rich family and although I have a profession, I have never had to work as I live off a fund my father set up for me. For various reasons the fund has been greatly reduced – and is much smaller than when I made the divorce agreement. Is this reason enough for me to be entitled to pay my children less maintenance.? Both my ex-wife and I are Jewish.

Answer:

To reduce the sum of child maintenance set in an agreement which was duly authorised in court and incorporated into a judgment two things have to be proved. Firstly, one must prove a substantial change of circumstances and secondly, that accordingly the present terms are now unjust or unfair. In a case before the Tel Aviv Family Court in June 2002 the plaintiff asked for a reduction in child maintenance for his minor daughter claiming that the figure he had agreed upon with her mother was made at a time when his income from a fund was much larger. Due to a depletion of money in the fund his income had been reduced. The court set a further hearing to which the sides were asked to bring evidence, but it hinted that this reason may not be sufficient to warrant a reduction in maintenance. It said that it saw no reason why the father who was qualified as a computer consultant could not find a job – rather than relying solely on interest from the fund.

Furthermore, according to Jewish law, which would apply in the above question, until a child is 15 the responsibility for supporting a minor lies solely with the father, and is only shared between both parents after that age.

Question:

My wife and I separated and she moved out of our home – which is owned by my father – and rented an apartment for her and our daughter. The family court awarded my wife temporary custody and passed judgment ordering me to pay maintenance for my wife and daughter, including the cost of her rent ($600). We still have not divorced but my wife has now moved near her parents, into an apartment belonging to the kibbutz where they are members. The rent there is only $200 and includes municipality taxes and water. I told my wife that it seemed logical that I should pay her less for rental now, too but she but she just smirked . Am I entitled to pay less towards rent in this case ?

Answer:

Most probably. Where there is an appreciable percentage drop in rental costs , then the person who is obliged to pay maintenance probably has a claim for a reduction in what he pays due to a substantial change of circumstances. If a wife who is entitled to maintenance for herself and her child refuses to co-operate in such a situation, then the person obliged to pay maintenance – the husband/father – is entitled to file for a reduction in maintenance. The court will probably only intervene if the difference between the two rental costs is substantial, and after it has checked that the overall accommodation costs have changed substantially after taking other elements, such as electricity, rates etc, into account

Question:

My wife has custody of our son but he is now going to boarding school. Can I just cut down the child maintenance I give his mother because of this ?

Answer:

No. A non-custodial parent cannot just take the law into his/her own hands and reduce the amount of child maintenance paid if the minor suddenly registers for a boarding school and spends all week there rather than with the custodial parent. Two options exist regarding the possibility of reducing the child maintenance – either reaching an agreement with the custodial parent or filing a plea for reduced child maintenance.

Question:

If one of my two children in my ex-wife’s custody moves in with me permanently with her mother’s blessing, does that mean I have to pay my ex- wife less child maintenance ? We authorised our divorce agreement at the family court before divorcing at the rabbinate.

Answer:

There is a connection between child custody and child maintenance. Once custody is officially changed – for example by virtue of a joint application to court by the father and the mother to authorise a change in their divorce agreement on the subject then the father should only have to pay the mother maintenance for the one child remaining in her custody. He will be directly responsible for supporting the child living with him.

If the mother co-operates both parents can ask the family court to authorise a change in the child maintenance the father has to pay the mother according to the agreement so that he is only responsible for the minor living with her. However, if the mother does not co-operate and is willing to give up the child but not compromise on maintenance, then the father can apply for a reduction in maintenance due to a substantial change in circumstances – that one child now lives with him.

Where both parents are Jewish , as in the above case, then Jewish religious law governs the children’s maintenance which is the sole responsibility of the father until the minor is 15, after which it is shared between both parents, depending on their relative incomes.

Question:

When my husband left home a few years ago I filed him for maintenance. The court did order him to pay maintenance although the sum was not high because I was earning a good salary at the time. A few months ago my son, who is now 13, was diagnosed as suffering from a very serious illness and I had to give up work to look after him round the clock. The doctors say he will never get better. Can I file for an increase in my maintenance ?

Answer:

Yes ! A situation whereby a wife is forced to give up work to look after a child who has become ill would probably be regarded by a court as constituting a change in circumstances which justifies the court reassessing the situation. In December 2001 a family court held that where a mother looks after a sick child or sick children her earning potential cannot be considered, within a plea for her maintenance. Accordingly it is reasonable to assume that where a plea is made for an increase in maintenance in these circumstances it would be successful.