After a custody or divorce matter is over, many people do not do some extremely important things which help to “tie up loose ends” in the legal case. Below is an outline of what should be done at a bare minimum, depending on the situation.
If Your Order Includes Child Support
Regardless of whether you are receiving child support or paying child support, it is highly recommended that you contact the Office of the Attorney General of Texas (“AOG”) and set up an account with them for child support as soon as your case is concluded. The AOG collects and distributes child support payments. Typically, the AOG will eventually begin automatically withdrawing child support from a paycheck of the paying parent (the “payor”), but this will not be immediate. Meanwhile, the payor can also pay through the AOG, who then passes the payment unto the parent receiving child support (the “payee”). Because the AOG can typically take up to a few months to begin that automatic withdrawal from the payor’s paycheck, and because payments still have to be made by the payor to the payee during the time that the AOG is setting everything up, the best way to do this is to create an account and make payment through the AOG to ensure that credit is given.
In addition, some counties in Texas fail to timely send Income Withholding Orders (“IWOs”) to the employer, delaying automatic income withholding towards child support. When an account with the AOG is set up, the AOG will then send their own IWO without waiting for the Court, thus expediting the process.
Any payments made directly to the payee may not be credited! As such, an account should be set up with the AOG by both parties and payor can pay the payee via the AOG until the automatic paycheck withdrawal kicks in. Despite this, if direct payments are made by the payor directly to the payee, then the payee should execute an affidavit of direct payment which would be filed with the AOG and credit given. Sometimes, the order itself will reflect payments already made and if so, the AOG should credit that as well.
As such, it benefits each party to set up accounts with the AOG. Often when setting up the account, a party will be asked to email a copy of the order and IWO to the AOG. Ask for a copy from your attorney before calling to set up the account.
If Your Order Includes Specifics on Custody and Your Child Attends School
If your order includes custody specifics, a parent should strongly consider sending a copy of the order to the school’s administrative office. This should help to ensure that the other parent does not take the child out of school when it is not their time of possession.
If Your Order Includes AppClose, OurFamilyWizard, or Other Communication Apps
Many Courts will order the parties to communicate via AppClose, OurFamilyWizard, or other apps that are subject to Court’s review to ensure best behavior. If this is the case, immediately register with the app ordered by the Court, and then send your username to the other party to comply with the order, and save proof that you did so.
If International Kidnapping Is a Risk
If there is risk that the child may be taken outside the US without permission or in violation of an order, one should contact the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Children’s Issues, which will then attempt to coordinate with airports and border crossings to prevent the parent from leaving with the child. CBP will likely need a copy of the order. (Unfortunately, this is not a fool-proof method given the number of people entering and leaving the country on a daily basis.)
If the Order Gives You Ownership of Real Property
If the order gives you ownership of a real estate, consider recording the order in the county records where the real estate property is located, which would then act as a deed confirming ownership. Note that the order has to have special muniment of title verbiage in it to be effective and act as a deed in this case.
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