A woman divorced her abusive husband, obtaining the custody of their two children. The divorce agreement specified a certain sum of child support the father was supposed to pay. As usually, the asshole husband stopped paying child support shortly after the divorce, and there was another court case in which the woman obtained a wage garnishment order. However, the amount garnished, determined by state guidelines, was considerably lower than the child support amount specified in the divorce agreement.
What is more, the mother foolishly agreed to allow her ex to claim tax exemption for one of the children. The end result is that the asshole pockets all federal tax refunds he gets for his "dependent" without paying a penny beyond what the state garnishes from his wages. The fact is that both children live with the mother all year round, and the mother provides more than 50% of support for both children. The asshole stubbornly refuses to relinquish the federal tax exemption that he claims for one kid.
Questions:
1. Can the difference between the amount specified in the divorce agreement and the amount of child support garnished by the state be considered "unpaid support" - and if so can the woman sue her ex for that money (plus interest, etc)?
2. Can the woman demand the payment of all federal tax credits the ex received for his 'dependent" child (which does not live with him and for which he provides less than 50% of support)?
3. What are the legal steps, if any, for the woman to take back the federal tax exemption from her ex in this situation?
Any suggestions will be appreciated.
Wojtek