What Happens to Arrears Debt if the Parent Responsible Dies

My question involves child support in the State of: Oregon
My father owes support arrears totaling a sum that he will unlikely pay off before he dies. What happens to the debt at that point? Anyone have any experience or advice?

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Quoting nailbread

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My question involves child support in the State of: Oregon
My father owes support arrears totaling a sum that he will unlikely pay off before he dies. What happens to the debt at that point? Anyone have any experience or advice?

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It becomes a debt of his estate and has to be paid by the estate (to the extent that the estate has assets to pay it) before any heirs get anything.

Does he have any other potential heirs besides you?

Like a second wife, other children?

How old are you?

How old is your father?

What, if anything, has your mother done to collect the arrears?

I have good reason for asking all those questions so please answer them.

Child support orders often require that the payor maintain life insurance.

I am 27, my father is 65. He has 5 children total. I doubt I will inherit anything from him as far as property or assets. He owns a house. So if he died and he still owned the house at the time of his death, there would be a lien on the property on behalf of the child support enforcement?

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Quoting adjusterjack

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It becomes a debt of his estate and has to be paid by the estate (to the extent that the estate has assets to pay it) before any heirs get anything.

Does he have any other potential heirs besides you?

Like a second wife, other children?

How old are you?

How old is your father?

What, if anything, has your mother done to collect the arrears?

I have good reason for asking all those questions so please answer them.

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oh and my mother does not live in the state, I have been trying to help with the collection enforcement on her behalf because she is very busy these days. As of right now, my father is paying $20 a month toward the arrears. He owes around $12,000. At $20 a month and sometimes every other month, we are looking at 30 years before its paid off.

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Quoting nailbread

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I am 27, my father is 65. He has 5 children total. I doubt I will inherit anything from him as far as property or assets. He owns a house. So if he died and he still owned the house at the time of his death, there would be a lien on the property on behalf of the child support enforcement?

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No. There would be no lien on the house unless there is a lien on it before he dies. And you don't get to put a lien on the house without a judgment.

As I said before, it would be up to the estate to pay the arrears but only to the estate's ability to pay. The estate may have to sell assets to pay it.

Child support arrearages are the top priority for payment of claims against the estate. See ORS 115.125:

http://law.justia.com/codes/oregon/2...ction-115.125/

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Quoting nailbread

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oh and my mother does not live in the state, I have been trying to help with the collection enforcement on her behalf because she is very busy these days. As of right now, my father is paying $20 a month toward the arrears. He owes around $12,000. At $20 a month and sometimes every other month, we are looking at 30 years before its paid off.

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And he could live another 30 years, too.

Unfortunately, it's up to your mother to take any legal action against your father for the payment of the arrears. If she's "too busy" then he skates.

When he dies, she will have to be the one to make the claim against the estate.

Has she filed with the Oregon Child Support Enforcement agency to see if there's any help there.

http://www.oregonchildsupport.gov/se...orcement.shtml

These agencies are capable of going after tax refunds, wages, and bank accounts to accelerate the payment of arrears.

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Quoting adjusterjack

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No. There would be no lien on the house unless there is a lien on it before he dies. And you don't get to put a lien on the house without a judgment.

As I said before, it would be up to the estate to pay the arrears but only to the estate's ability to pay. The estate may have to sell assets to pay it.

Child support arrearages are the top priority for payment of claims against the estate. See ORS 115.125:

http://law.justia.com/codes/oregon/2...ction-115.125/



And he could live another 30 years, too.

Unfortunately, it's up to your mother to take any legal action against your father for the payment of the arrears. If she's "too busy" then he skates.

When he dies, she will have to be the one to make the claim against the estate.

Has she filed with the Oregon Child Support Enforcement agency to see if there's any help there.

http://www.oregonchildsupport.gov/se...orcement.shtml

These agencies are capable of going after tax refunds, wages, and bank accounts to accelerate the payment of arrears.

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My mother has been trying in vain to get a review of the case. The order for $20 a month is out dated, it was established when my father had no assets or a bank account. Now he has a car and a house and other assets he recently inherited. There has been no review as far as I know. I suppose it could be in the works, the case is so old its hardly a priority but it is active last time I checked.

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Quoting nailbread

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My mother has been trying in vain to get a review of the case.

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What does that mean?

You write that the $20 per month "order" is old. How old? 10 years? 20 years? If the original order was $20 per month and she never filed for an increase while you were still a minor then it's too late to file for an increase now.

If he's missed enough payments to rack up $12,000 in arrears she can take him to court for contempt.

There's nothing "in vain" about any of that procedure.

She files for contempt, he gets summoned to court, if he ignores the summons he can eventually be arrested and order to pay X dollars or face arrest again.

There are processes available that can inexorably lead to payment of additional amounts if one takes advantage of them properly.

I'm guessing, with you being 27 and presumably self supporting, that your mother has other things to do with her life so that the $12,000 arrears is not much of a priority.

What do you mean you've been trying to help with.collection enforcement. ? You have no authority. If I were you I wouldn't count on ever seeing any of that money. Besides, it is owed to your mother for what she paid for your care that the child support should have paid. You're 27 years old. you need to forget about it.