Ex doesn’t want to work, wants support

During the pandemic, the small accounting firm my husband worked for closed when the boss decided to retire. It worked out OK because, as a nurse I was extra busy and able to pick up a ton of extra shifts, and he collected unemployment. Now unemployment has run out, he filed for divorce asking for full custody of the kids saying he is an at-home parent and wants child support from me.

Can he just decide unilaterally to turn himself into an at-home dad and not really work? He has done a few tax returns on the side for friends for cash but refuses to really work. Before the pandemic I worked per diem and was home with the kids far more often than he was. His lawyer is saying a year look back is how the judge will determine the status quo for the kids.

Do I have any options here?

A one-year look back to determine the children’s status quo might have been applicable in pre-pandemic times but the last year and a half have been anything but normal and is unlikely to be the only time period considered by the judge when looking at the children’s status quo for developing a parenting plan. The judge will consider pre-pandemic status quo as well as pandemic status quo in most situations, especially like yours.

I suggest you go on the offensive. Make a motion to have your husband ordered to engage in a job search or, in the alternative, attribute income to him at his pre-pandemic earnings in order to establish child support. The court can order him to look for a job and report on his progress to the probation department on a weekly basis until employed. It is widely known that, right now, pretty much everyone is understaffed and looking for help. If your husband wants a job, he will get one very quickly. If he doesn’t cooperate and get a job, or takes a part-time position, the judge can attribute income to him at his prior earning level.

In support of your motion, prepare an affidavit of your prior work schedules, the prior status quo in terms of who took care of the children when, how that changed during the pandemic and why. It may be that a temporary order from the court will not resurrect your exact prior schedule and instead you will end up with 50/50 time sharing with the children. In the circumstances you’ve described, a 50/50 time sharing sounds like it may be in the children’s best interest anyway given their evolving reliance on one parent and then the other over time. It is likely they will adjust just fine to spending half their time with each of you.

Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com.