Effects of Child Support and Alimony on Workers’ Compensation
Workers’ compensation helps with your medical expenses and replaces a portion of your wages while you recover from a workplace accident. But will partial wages be enough if you also have child support and alimony obligations? It’s a reasonable question many Marylanders encounter after a job injury.
Workers’ compensation is an insurance program that aids individuals injured in the workplace regardless of fault. Nearly every employer in Maryland with one or more employees must carry workers’ compensation insurance, with few exceptions. This insurance helps to protect injured workers from the financial instability that can arise when an accident prevents them from returning to work immediately.
At Trollinger Law LLC, we can explain how alimony and child support affect workers’ compensation settlements in Maryland. Call or contact us today for a free case evaluation.
Child Support and Workers’ Compensation
Child support payments are financial responsibilities you incur in a divorce settlement. Often, these payments come from the non-custodial parent and are made to the custodial parent to help raise a child and maintain their standard of living. Alimony, or spousal support, is money paid to a former spouse to help them maintain their standard of living post-divorce.
Although you may be living off reduced income for a time as you recover, Maryland law still requires you to pay your court-ordered financial obligations, including alimony and child support. This can be challenging because the amount of money you collect from workers’ compensation is a smaller percentage of your actual wages. If you don’t have a financial cushion to fall back on, you could be left struggling.
Do I Still Have to Pay the Same Amount of Child Support When I’m Receiving Workers’ Compensation?
While the law says you must continue making child support and alimony payments while receiving workers’ comp benefits, that doesn’t necessarily mean you will have to pay the same amount. You may be able to reduce the amount of child support you pay while you receive workers’ compensation benefits.
Maryland uses the Child Support Guidelines formula to calculate the amount of child support a parent must pay following a divorce. The guidelines consider each parent’s monthly income, work-related child care, medical, and health insurance expenses. When a significant event changes one parent’s financial situation, like a sudden accident or illness, an individual may request the court to modify the terms of the child support agreement. A downward modification can reduce child support payments, helping you keep your head above water.
Returning to court to request a child support modification can be overwhelming. You need solid documentation to demonstrate why you need to adjust your child support payments. An experienced workers’ compensation attorney can help you through the process, reducing stress during this challenging time.
Does Workers’ Compensation Impact My Alimony Payments?
Like child support, you must still make alimony payments during your recovery. But if you can show a judge there has been a significant change in the amount of money you bring in due to a workplace accident, you might be able to obtain an alimony modification to reduce your payments. This modification is an adjustment based on your new financial circumstances.
What to Do If You Cannot Meet Your Child Support Obligations
Being unable to make your child support payments while receiving workers’ comp puts you in a stressful position. However tricky your new financial situation is, do not cut off your child support or alimony payments without consulting an experienced attorney first. There can be significant consequences for failing to pay child support.
Maryland law follows the Federal Consumer Credit Protection Act, which allows wage garnishment for failure to pay child support and alimony. You could petition the court for an earnings withholding order, which would allow the payments you owe to come out of your paycheck, unemployment benefits, Social Security, or workers’ compensation payments.
How much can child support take from a workers’ compensation settlement? The answer depends on your unique situation and how far behind you are on child support payments.
Failing to pay your court-ordered financial obligations can cause significant legal problems and worsen your situation. A skilled workers’ compensation attorney can advise on what to do if you cannot fulfill your child support or alimony responsibilities. A lawyer can work to find more favorable solutions to your new financial situation and pursue ways to reduce your child support and alimony payments while you collect workers’ compensation benefits.
Get Help from Our Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
Workers’ compensation benefits can serve as an essential source of income when you suffer from a work-related injury or illness. However, outside financial responsibilities like alimony and child support can make a tough situation even tougher. Now is the time to talk to an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer about your situation. At Trollinger Law LLC, we carefully review your case and look for ways to help you manage the situation.
You deserve time to recover from your work-related injury with as little stress as possible. Let the legal team at Trollinger Law LLC identify your next steps while you are out of commission. Contact our law firm online today for a free consultation with a workers’ compensation lawyer in Waldorf, MD.
