At the conclusion of a divorce, legal separation, or paternity action, the court enters an order of child support stipulating the amount of transfer payment from one parent to the other and allocating the payment of other child related expenses. The relative amounts of these payments are based upon the combined incomes and other circumstances of both parents. But when circumstances change, Washington State / WA child support modifications are actions used to change child support orders to be commensurate with those changes.

Washington State child support modifications may not be filed for just any change. The relevant statutory language requires the petitioner to show a “substantial change of circumstances” as a condition precedent to filing the action. Furthermore, the change must be permanent (i.e., not merely temporary) and continuing, not anticipated during the entry of the order to be modified, and have an impact on a parent’s ability to support the children. Washington State child support modifications may be brought without this showing, but only under certain circumstances too detailed to discuss here.

The petitioner in Washington State child support modifications has the burden of proving that the factors used to determine support have changed and proving just what those factors amount to now. The court also requires that petitioner to file proposed child support worksheets and a proposed new order that meets certain requirements for Washington State child support modifications. Finally, keep in mind that generally these actions do not involve oral argument, and the court generally assigns Washington State child support modifications to a court commissioner rather than a trial judge. The policy there is to keep the issues confined to facts and figures relating to child support payments and to discourage post divorce spiteful litigation. An attorney who handles Washington State child support modifications can help you understand whether the facts of your case warrant filing such a case.

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