In January 2007 Dalton McGuinty has found yet another way to kick deadbeats, many he created himself.
He will now begin to publish pictures of those in arrears on public web sites. Regardless of the fact this violates human rights and privacy laws, can you imagine the embarrassment of those who are willing to pay support but due to the corruption, inefficiency, cost and lack of accountability within the system are so classified.
To counter, a group of Fathers Rights activists are creating a website called “Meal Ticket-Kidnapper Moms “. This latest collaborative effort will not use a cent of taxpayers’ money, but will be entirely subsidized by the fathers and other persons involved. Fathers and their supporters feel this is a fair and adequate balance to the Liberal Ontario Provincial government’s outrageous attempts to shame and embarrass fathers who they allege have not paid child support. There is a hope that this website will, just like the deadbeat parents website claims to be doing, shame the “Meal Ticket-Kidnapper Moms” into turning themselves in or halting their fraudulent activities.
So how long will it take for all out war between ex moms and dads…..Is any of this in the best interests of the Family?
How to make a Good Dad into a Deadbeat:
Following are 2 real life example of how the Courts, Child Support Guidelines, Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines conspire to bankrupt and then turn a hard working Dad into a deadbeat.
Example 1. Details:
The parents have divorced; there are 4 children of the marriage. Each parent has custody of 2 of the children. Parent A earns $100,000 per year. Parent B does not work and earns $0. Each child is allocated $3,000 in special expenses (ortho, other medical, extracurricular etc.) which is treated over and above guideline amount in the Child Support Guidelines.
As court action is required each time there is a change in circumstance (approximately every 2 years), legal fees are approximated to $10,000 per year.
Following is a chart of how such a situation is treated within the law and the courts.
Note:
You don’t need to take my word. Take your own example, follow the Child Support Guidelines, Spousal Support Guidelines, a tax guide to come to your own conclusion.
The Results: Guess the deatbeat?
Remember: Parent A and B each have custody of 2 children. Parent “A” has no earnings but ends up with effective income of $50,050
Parent “B” earns $100,000 with effective income of $10,569. Question: Which parent is classified as the deadbeat?
Parent “A” who does not work and receives $50,050 after tax or Parent “B” who earns $100,000 and ends up with $10,569, works hard to earn a good wage to support his now divided family, is required to pay outrages support which forces him into arrears and bankruptcy.
Answer: And the Deadbeat is….
If you chose Parent “A” you would be wrong!!!!
If you guess the hard working Parent “B” as the deadbeat you win!!!!
Example 2 Details – Real example that forced me into bankruptcy.
Parent “A” income is a CPP income of $12,000 per year. There is 1 child, age 22, 4 years over the age of majority, has no debt, attends university in home town, works hard during breaks and has an income $12,000. University expenses are $6,000.
Parent “B” works hard and has an income of $100,000. The young self sufficient adult is ordered by Judge Speyer to remain a dependent and orders both child support and special expenses in addition to spousal support.
Following reflects Justice Speyer’s Court Order.
Results
- Parent “A ” and over age of majority dependant receive after tax and deducting university expenses $60,499.
- Parent “B” who works hard pays all the costs is left in the negative to the tune of ($11,383) and is forced into bankruptcy.
I won’t go through the guessing game again but as before Parent “B” is still the deadbeat.
Note: Re: Legal Costs ….
This time I did not represent myself but hired a lawyer to make sure I would get professional support. “For what it’s worth”…. The only difference was that the lawyer added another $30,000 after tax to my troubles.
Deadbeat Summary:
A good deadbeat summary article;
- The Truth About Deadbeat Dads
- From Readers Digest
- BY GLADYS POLLACK
For decades, they have been pictured as living the high life — driving their Porsches, vacationing in exotic places — while their former wives and their children haunt food banks and live off welfare. Branded as “deadbeat dads,” they are viewed as heartless men who have simply walked away from their family responsibilities. The fact is, sure, there are some dads who fall into this category — men who have fathered children but don’t want to honour their obligations to them — but a closer examination reveals another story.
In general, statistics indicate that between 85 to 91 percent of Canadian children covered either by private or court-ordered child- support agreements actually receive payments, the vast majority receiving regular support payments. And statistics also reveal the close association between the regularity of payment and the frequency of contact between fathers and their children.
Studies also show that many non custodial fathers who do not pay child support simply can’t afford to. Some are unemployed or on sick leave. In fact, one of the best predictors of non-payment is the unemployment rate. Higher incomes are associated with higher compliance rates, and lower incomes with lower rates. One study suggests that a father’s ability to pay, in addition to his willingness to pay, determines the extent to which he fulfills his child-support obligations.
Burdened by unrealistic court- imposed support payments, continuing legal fees, increased taxes due to changes imposed by Bill C-41 and estrangement from their children, some men find themselves caught in a downward spiral of depression and have resorted to the ultimate escape: suicide. With a divorce, funds that were unable to support one household are now expected to support two. Add to this the cost of expensive litigation, the fact that one party may be trying to use money as a means of obtaining concessions such as access or custody, and we have a recipe for disaster — with children often caught in the maelstrom
What happens after the break-up of the family? Eighty-seven percent of children end up living solely with their mothers after a parental separation (only 7 percent live with their fathers). Only 30 percent of children report visiting their fathers every week. One quarter of children visit their fathers irregularly — once a month or on holidays. A whopping 15 percent never see their fathers.
And what has Bill C-41 done for fathers? Under the changes to the tax treatment of child support, which came into effect on May 1, 1997, it is no longer taxable in the hands of the receiving parent and no longer deductible in the hands of the paying parent. It is worthy of note that when the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada rose in Parliament to speak in favour of Bill C-41, he stated that the revenue derived from ending the deduction of child-support payments would yield the federal government more than an additional $1 billion dollars over a five-year period.
Finding solutions that are in the best interests of the children was the aim of the 1998 Senate-Commons Joint Committee on Child Custody and Access. Understanding that children of divorce are entitled to a close and continuing relationship with both parents, the committee recommended that the terms “custody” and “access” be stricken from the Divorce Act and a new term, “shared parenting,” be incorporated. Both parents would have access to information and records regarding the child’s development and social activities, such as school and medical records and other relevant information. The federal government has apparently shelved the committee’s recommendations, however, in the interests of further study.
Yes, there are some deadbeats who don’t care about their kids. But it’s unfair and unproductive to label every father who falls behind in his support payments a “deadbeat.”