The Better Chancery Practice Blog

When I was in private practice, our firm was visited from time to time by a couple from a neighboring county who lived in the fading glimmer of bygone prosperity. They would arrive in a 20-year-old Cadillac with threadbare upholstery. The husband wore well-cut, if aged, shiny-legged suits, and the wife was attired in tailored dresses from the 50’s. They lived in an elegant, old home that had fallen into a shabby state. I understood that the old gentleman was the son of a wealthy family, but that vein of wealth had undoubtedly run lean.

The pair would visit for a while with my senior partner until the conversation lapsed into an uneasy silence, at which point the lady would profess that they were “temporarily financially embarrassed,” and could he spare them a few dollars until the first of the month. To my knowledge they never left disappointed.

In like manner, Paul Frazier became temporarily financially embarrassed when he lost his job and had to take a job paying considerably less. He petitioned the chancery court for a downward modification. The chancellor granted a reduction for a period of one year, and assessed him with a judgment for $10,000 in child support arrearage. His ex-wife, Sharon, appealed.

On appeal, Sharon argued that Paul should not have been able to modify his obligation because it was contractual, an argument that the court brushed aside. She also questioned whether the chancellor had authority to grant a temporary or time-limited reduction in child support.

Here’s what Judge Fair’s opinion in Frazier v. Frazier, handed down June 25, 2013, stated on the point for a unanimous court:

¶17. The Supreme Court of Mississippi, in Bailey v. Bailey, 724 So. 2d 335, 339 (¶12) (Miss. 1998), held that temporary reduction in child support, as occurred in this case, is not only within the power of a chancellor – it is required under appropriate circumstances. In Bailey it was held:

Where the reason for modification is temporary in nature, the trial court should order a temporary reduction in child support. See Nichols v. Tedder, 547 So. 2d 766, 781-82 (Miss. 1989). The chancellor’s order permanently reducing Sandra’s child support obligation is reversed, and this case is remanded for further findings on a reasonable temporary reduction in child support.

Id. (emphasis added).

¶18. In today’s case the chancellor determined that, based on financial disclosures of income and assets referred to but not included in the record on appeal, a “reasonable temporary reduction in child support” was appropriate, even if she did not use those exact words. She stated, in ruling from the bench, that Paul could pay the amount he had voluntarily agreed was needed to support his two children by rearranging his priorities, financial affairs, and employment. The chancellor temporarily reduced his child support for a year in order to assist him in doing so. That was not error.

Temporary modification is a nifty item to add to your tool chest, offensively or defensively. If you represent the payor, and you know your chancellor is going to frown on a downward modification, consider asking in the alternative for a temporary reduction. Likewise, if you are on the other side, and the equities clearly favor reduction, consider asking the court to make it temporary. At least until the embarrassment subsides.

Frazier is the subject of a previous post dealing with retroactive modification.

Tagged: temporsry reduction in child support