Ex moved states, but contempt complaint will follow him

Q. My ex moved to Florida. He has violated our divorce agreement in several ways including not cooperating with the division of retirement assets, mails me a check for child support on Fridays instead of doing a direct transfer to my account, but each check is at least a week late because of mail delays and then takes several days to clear from an out of state bank.  He also owes me money from our son’s braces.

I know I can take him back to court for a contempt but I don’t have the money to fight this in Florida.  Do I have any options?

A. His decision to move to Florida does not prevent you from filing a complaint for contempt in Massachusetts. You should file your complaint here. Once the court issues the summons you will need to have him served with the summons which notifies him of the date, time and location of the hearing, and a copy of the complaint for contempt in Florida. A contempt summons does not have to be served in hand like a divorce summons. You can hire a professional process server who will either give it to him in hand if he is home or else leave it taped to his front door and mail a copy as well. The process server will fill out the return of service and send it to you to file with the court so you proof that you have properly served him.

The best way to find a process server in Florida is to call a local bar association, explain the situation and ask for a referral.  Or you could call a fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers near his home in Florida and ask for a referral.

As part of your contempt complaint ask that he be ordered to pay your legal fees and costs. Typically, contempt hearings are held in person even if a party lives out of state. In-person hearing is important in a contempt because if he does not pay what is due before the hearing, the court can put him in jail until he complies. It is amazing how fast people find the money when facing a night in jail.

You should also elect to collect child support through the Department of Revenue now that he lives out of state because they can work with the Florida department to collect the money for you in the future.  And they can garnish his wages regardless of what state he may move to in the future.

Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com