Child Support and Visitation Are Separate Issues

Hello, my name is Brian L. Jackson. I’m a Tulsa father’s rights attorney here with Dads.Law where fathers are not disposable. So guys, I want to talk to you a little bit about another issue that comes up frequently. Is child support connected with visitation? And this is one that I will give bad news to both parties because there seem to be a lot of pervasive myths around this one. The answer is no, they’re not.

The duty to pay child support and the duty to honor a visitation agreement are two separate issues. If there’s an order for visitation, the parent who’s the primary custodian has a legal duty to honor, not only to honor it, but to facilitate it. And if you’re, and if the parents, if there’s an order for child support, the obligor, that is the payer, the person who’s supposed to pay, is obliged to pay. And they’re obliged to pay whether they’re getting visitation or not, just as the person who is the primary custodian is obliged to facilitate visitation, whether they’re being paid or not.

The Importance of Honoring Court Orders

Your remedy, if somebody’s not honoring a court order, is contempt. Not to resort to self-help. And guys, I would tell you right now you do not want to resort to self-help because contempt court sucks and it can get expensive very quickly and you’ll wind up with a serious problem if you don’t follow your court order because what can happen is they can put you in jail for up to six months for not honoring that court order. And I know with child support court in particular, they don’t play. They will put you in jail and very quickly. So just be aware of that and if you are dealing with a situation where somebody’s not honoring a court order, you need to get up with the court. Don’t try to resort to self-help.

Get Your Low-cost Strategy Session Today

And guys, if you have questions about that, I would encourage you to go to Dads.Law where fathers are not disposable. We offerinitial strategy session s to help you understand your rights and navigate through any legal challenges you may be facing. Don’t hesitate to reach out and get the support you need.