"My ex is now married to a rich guy - do I have to pay child support?" - Ontario

Question: “My ex-wife is now married to a rich guy. They live in a mansion and she drives an Audi. She does not need child support from me. Do I still have to pay it?”

Answer: The answer is "yes".

The obligation of a parent to support a child is rooted in the parent/child relationship between them (and this includes non-biological children if the adult acted like a parent). In other words, it is you and your child who have a fundamental, including financial relationship. The child support you pay is not the right of your ex-wife. It is the right of your child and he/she continues to be entitled to receive it from you, provided he/she is still eligible for child support .

You pay child support based on your income, whether high or low. Your ex-wife's financial circumstances may mean that in the end, your child may enjoy a more affluent standard of living because of his or her mother's new financial circumstances, but that does not affect your fundamental obligation to support your child. There are some limited circumstances in which the new spouse’s income becomes relevant but overall, their means do not affect your fundamental child support obligation.

By way of example, if you make $25,000 a year and your ex-wife's new husband makes $500,000, you still have to pay child support based on $25,000 but you are not expected to pay enough support to match her and her husband's $500,000 lifestyle.  Remember, your child is still entitled to support from you based on $25,000 worth of income.

©AJJakubowska