Another Social Security meets child support case

Father and Mother agree that if Father gets 18 months of Social Security benefits then that will be applied to his child support arrears, but father gets 22 months of past benefits and trial court agrees with Mother that the extra months are not to be applied to Father's arrears. See Scott Butterfield v. Jane (Butterfield) Constantine. (PDF format).

I do not understand Mother's position here as it seems a very poor one. Reducing Father's arrears seems only fair when Father does not dispute applying the Social Security surplus (which would be foolish for him not to agree to this) to his arrears. Then, too, I cannot see drafting the kind of agreement these people signed off on. Applying all the Social Security lump sum payment to the arrears would be a better agreement in my opinion.

Lump Sum Social Security Payments and Child Support in Indiana

In Indiana, does a parent getting a lump sum Social Security disability payment entitled to a credit against the parent's child support obligations?

The answer is: Yes.

From the Indiana Supreme Court opinion in Brown v. Brown (which is in PDF format):

Because of Danny Brown's disability, his son received a lump-sum distribution of retroactive Social Security disability benefits as well as monthly benefits going forward. Brown seeks credit for the lump-sum payment against an accumulated child support arrearage and credit for the monthly benefits against his future support obligation. Following precedent from this State and others, we hold that a disabled parent is entitled to credit against the parent's child support obligations for Social Security disability benefits paid to a child, effective as of the date the parent files a petition to modify a support order. The petition may be filed upon application for disability benefits.

Social Security FAQ about marital benefits

Generally, these do not concern us if the marriage lasted less than ten years. The FAQ can be found here.