Enforcing a Child Support Order in North Dakota
Enforcing a child support order in North Dakota involves a series of legal procedures that are governed by the North Dakota Century Code. This article will provide a detailed overview of these procedures, including the roles of the support enforcement agency, the process of registering a support order, and the steps taken when an obligor contests the enforcement.
Role of the Support Enforcement Agency
According to the North Dakota Century Code, a support enforcement agency is a public official or agency authorized to enforce support orders or laws relating to the duty of support, establish or modify child support, request determination of parentage of a child, locate obligors or their assets, and request determination of the controlling child support order (27).
A party or support enforcement agency seeking to enforce a support order or an income-withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order may send the documents required for registering the order to a support enforcement agency of North Dakota (1). Upon receipt of the documents, the support enforcement agency, without initially seeking to register the order, shall consider and, if appropriate, use any administrative procedure authorized by the law of North Dakota to enforce a support order or an income-withholding order, or both (2).
Registration of Order for Enforcement
The North Dakota Century Code (14-12.2-35) states that a support order or an income-withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order may be registered in North Dakota for enforcement. The procedure to register the order for enforcement involves sending the following records to the appropriate tribunal in North Dakota:
- A letter of transmittal to the tribunal requesting registration and enforcement
- Two copies, including one certified copy, of the order to be registered, including any modification of the order
- A sworn statement by the person requesting registration or a certified statement (14-12.2-36).
Contesting the Enforcement of the Order
If the obligor contests the validity or administrative enforcement of the order, the support enforcement agency shall register the order pursuant to this chapter (2). If the child support agency receives notice that the obligor is contesting the income withholding in another state, it shall immediately notify the individual obligee of the date, time, and place of the hearings and of the obligee’s right to attend.
Review and Amendment of the Order
The child support order can be reviewed by the child support agency if more than twelve months have passed since the establishment of the order or the most recent amendment or review of that order by the court or child support agency, whichever is later; and the order provides for no child support and was based on a finding that the obligor has no ability to pay child support (3). If, upon review, the child support agency determines that the order provides for child support payments in an amount that is inconsistent with the amount that would be required by the child support guidelines established under subsection 1 of section 14-09-09.7, the child support agency may seek an amendment of the order (3).
Disbursement of Child Support Payments
The North Dakota Century Code provides a specific order for the disbursement of child support payments. In the event of the obligee’s death, the payments are disbursed as specifically provided in a court order, to the obligee’s estate or as provided in the obligee’s will, to the child or children on whose behalf the payments were made if the child or children are all eighteen years of age or older, as directed by the court if one or more of the children to whom the child support is owed is under eighteen years old, or refunded to the obligor if the court determines that the past-due child support cannot be disbursed under this section (10).
In conclusion, enforcing a child support order in North Dakota involves a series of legal procedures that are governed by the North Dakota Century Code. It is advisable to seek legal counsel to navigate these procedures effectively.