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The appeals court agreed with the lower court. It said the father did not prove his job loss was through no fault of his own. He also did not show he made diligent efforts to find new work matching his skills and experience. Because of this, he failed to prove a substantial change in circumstances. The court also upheld the finding that he willfully violated his support order. Once the mother showed he failed to pay as required, the burden shifted to the father to prove he truly could not pay. The court found he did not meet that burden. His 30-day jail commitment was already over, so that part of the appeal was dismissed as moot, meaning no longer a live issue.
A father and mother divorced in October 2021. Their agreement required the father to pay $4,411 a month in child support, plus 77% of child care costs. In April 2022, the father asked the court to suspend his payments, saying he was unemployed and dealing with depression. Later, he also asked for a downward modification, meaning a request to lower his payments. In December 2022, the mother filed a petition saying he had willfully failed to pay support. After a hearing, a Support Magistrate dismissed the father's requests and found he had willfully violated his support obligation. The father was later ordered committed to jail for 30 days unless he paid $46,521, called a purge amount, the sum needed to avoid jail.
The main question was whether the father proved his job loss was a real, substantial change in circumstances. Under New York law, a parent asking to lower child support due to job loss must show the job ended through no fault of their own, and that they made real efforts to find similar work. The court also had to decide if the finding that he willfully violated his support order was correct.
This case shows how strict New York courts are when a parent asks to lower or stop child support. Losing a job is not enough on its own. The parent must show real effort to find new work. Courts also give strong weight to the hearing officer's judgment on credibility. This ruling reinforces that child support orders stay enforceable unless a parent proves a genuine, documented change in circumstances.
Talk to a licensed family law lawyer in New York.