Although the children do not have the final say in Arizona regarding parenting time, they do have a voice so long as they have valid reasons for their desires. There is no specific age that the children have a say, but their desires are usually provided more weight as they become older. See ARS Section 25-403(4) (the wishes of the child are relevant “if the child is of suitable age and maturity”). Often a Court appointed professional does not ask the children specifically what parent they want to live with, but rather asks other more general questions in order to determine the child’s desires and other best interest factors.
One of the most common topics that may require a modification to parenting time occurs when one of the parties desires to relocate with the children. The issue of child relocations is addressed specifically in other sections of our website by our Phoenix child relocation attorneys.
Common reasons for modifying a parenting time order, include but are not limited to the following:
- The parent with less parenting time desires additional time. This may be prompted by the children getting older or other reasons.
- One of the parents may have engaged in behavior contrary to the best interests of the children, for example, domestic violence, substance abuse, alcohol dependency, and inappropriate discipline of the children.
- The children desire to spend more time with one of the parents.
- The children may desire to reside primarily with one of the parents. This may be for valid reasons, such as one of the parents failing to spend quality time with the children during his / her parenting time, or is verbally or emotionally abusive toward the children.
Modification of Legal Decision Making (Legal Custody) Orders
INCLUDING SCHOOL CHOICE ISSUES
If you already have joint legal decision-making, it may be difficult to modify the legal decision-making order because Arizona presumes that joint legal decision-making is in the best interests of the children. As noted in the section of this website dealing with legal decision making, the term “custody” is no longer part of the Arizona Statutes. Legal decision making includes educational decisions, health care decisions, and major personal care decisions.
If the other parent has sole legal decision making and you would like the Court to modify it’s order to grant joint legal decision making such requests may be granted if circumstances have changed or there is no reason to continue to order sole legal decision making / sole legal custody.
To modify legal decision making, once again must show a substantial and continuing change of circumstances. The children’s desires have less impact on legal decision making. One of the most common grounds to modify legal decision making is where one of the parents is essentially impossible to deal with. Other reasons often include substance abuse and domestic violence. Consult with one of our Phoenix custody modification lawyers to see if your reason may be sufficient to modify the Court’s prior legal decision making orders.
Choice of schools is often a hotly contested issue within the legal decision-making arena. Courts are reluctant to decide what school the children attend, and thus often rule that one parent should have legal decision making responsibilities over education while maintaining joint legal decision making regarding non-educational issues.
Modification of Child Support Orders
To modify a child support order, one must show a substantial and continuing change of circumstances that leads to a different child support amount. (See Section 24, Child Support Guidelines). A change of circumstances that results in a 15% difference in the child support amount is presumed to qualify as a substantial change of circumstances. The term “continuing” means that it is not a temporary change of circumstances. Changed circumstances that can lead to a different child support amount may include either party’s change in income, the termination or modification of spousal maintenance, a change in the parenting schedule that affects the child support guidelines calculations, a change in the number of children that are subject to the child support order (i.e. one or more of the children graduate from high school or reach 18 years old), or the change or termination of certain child-related costs such as health insurance, childcare expenses, etc.
When modifying a child support order, other child support related orders may change as well, such as the division of the tax dependency exemptions, the percentage each party pays for uncovered medical expenses, and other expenses that are divided between the parties proportionate to income.
To modify child support, you must first file a petition to modify the prior child support order with the Court unless both parties agree to the modification. If both parties agree to the modification, a stipulation regarding the new amount should be submitted to the Court. Child support modifications do not happen automatically. For example, just because one of the children graduates, child support remains the same for the remaining children unless you file a petition to modify child support or enter into a stipulation with the other parent to a new amount and file the stipulation with the Court. The only automatic modification/termination is when there are no remaining children subject to the child support order. However, in such event, you will want to make sure that the Court discontinues your Order Of Assignment so that your wages do not continue to be garnished after child support terminates.
It is important to note that a child support modification cannot be made retroactive before the date that the petition is filed. Sometimes a parent is disheartened to find out that even though the child lived with him or her, child support continues to accrue because no petition was filed. In the event that there are changed circumstances, it is always a good idea to at least consult with a qualified attorney to explore whether you should file for a modification of child support.
Similar to the establishment of a child support order, there may be complex factors in your child support modification case, such as attributing income to an underemployed or unemployed parent, whether a parent is truthful regarding the amount of income they earn (especially self-employed parents), whether an upward or downward deviation in the child support guidelines amount should be ordered based upon the children’s respective standard of living in each household, and other factors. We recommend you consult with a Phoenix child support modifications attorney to handle the complex factors in your child support modifications case.
Click here for a more in depth child support information including a summary of the Arizona Child Support Guidelines and click here to access the Arizona Child Support Calculator.
Modification of Spousal Maintenance Orders
Spousal maintenance orders in general are subject to the statutory factors pursuant to A.R.S. § 25-319. Such statute governs eligibility and duration of the awards. Spousal maintenance modification proceedings are still subject to the same factors, as well as additional requirements.
A prior spousal maintenance order that states that it is “non-modifiable” cannot be modified. Such an order can only be “non-modifiable” if the parties agreed to such language in their final divorce decree. Otherwise, a spousal maintenance order is potentially subject to modification if one of the parties can establish “changed circumstances that are substantial and continuing.” ARS Section 25-327(A).
Before September 2022, spousal maintenance awards were more discretionary and arbitrary. Pursuant to recent amendments to the statute, such awards are more limited as applied to the duration of such awards and the amount of spousal maintenance to be awarded. As a result of the statutory change, new Spousal Maintenance Guidelines have been proposed and are being reviewed by the Supreme Court of Arizona. Pursuant to the new proposed Arizona Spousal Maintenance Guidelines, a spouse may be eligible for the modification of a spousal maintenance award if the new presumed amount is different than what was ordered before. If such proposal is adopted, and even if your income or other circumstances have not changed, you may still be eligible for a modification even if your income is still substantially higher than your ex-spouse. [We will update this section of the website when we hear from the Supreme Court whether this change has been approved].
In addition to changes to the statute, changed circumstances in many spousal maintenance modification cases include a change in income to either or both parties. However, even though there are changed circumstances, there is no guarantee that the Court will modify the spousal maintenance amount or duration. For example, the Court could find that a payor is still able to afford paying the same spousal maintenance amount even though his or her income has decreased. In the same regard, the Court could find that somebody is not entitled to a modification of spousal maintenance based solely upon the fact that the paying party makes more money if the recipient’s reasonable needs or ability to become self-sufficient have not materially changed.
In addition, there are Arizona cases that state that such changed circumstances must not be reasonably foreseeable at the time of the spousal maintenance award. Case law is somewhat ambiguous with regard to what this means as any circumstance could be argued as foreseeable, i.e. losing one’s job, incurring a disability, etc. That being said, if the spousal maintenance amount or duration is different than the new guidelines, a modification could potentially take place regardless of whether the change in circumstance was forseeable.
One of the more common reasons to request a modification or termination of a spousal maintenance award is the retirement of the paying party. If the party has reached the mid-point social security retirement age, this is generally an adequate reason to seek such a modification or termination. The reasonably accepted retirement age is generally 65 years old (albeit new retirees do not receive full social security unless they delay retirement until 67). Such modification or termination of spousal maintenance is, however, not guaranteed if the payor can still afford to pay spousal maintenance even though retired, and if the recipient still cannot achieve self-sufficiency absent such spousal maintenance award. It should be noted that under the new anticipated spousal maintenance guidelines, a future anticipated retirement does not qualify as a changed circumstances. Rather somebody must actually retire before the court considers such as a changed circumstance.
In some cases, a party may desire to extend the duration of spousal maintenance. Such petition to extend the duration of spousal maintenance must be filed prior to the expiration of the spousal maintenance term. In such event, one still must show a substantial and continuing change of circumstances. For example, a recipient’s continued inability to meet his or her reasonable needs or self-sufficiency without spousal maintenance may not be grounds to continue a spousal maintenance award if he or she has not made good faith efforts to obtain employment or maximize his / her income potential, and if there have not been changed circumstances that suggest that the award should be extended beyond the term set forth in the original order.
There is a difference between the modification of a spousal maintenance award, and the termination of such award. A spousal maintenance award automatically terminates upon the death of either party, or the remarriage of the recipient. A spousal maintenance award also terminates when the duration has been completed so long as it is not extended by the Court pursuant to a petition to modify.
Arizona law regarding whether a spousal maintenance award can be modified is very technical. It is always a good idea to consult with a qualified family law attorney before filing a motion to modify a spousal maintenance award.
Can the Division of Property and Debt in a Divorce Decree be Modified?
We occasionally get calls from a divorced party that does not feel that the agreement they entered into or the orders entered by the Court that are set forth in the the Decree of Dissolution are fair. The problem with such “buyer’s remorse” is that it may be too late to do anything about it.
Absent a stipulation between the parties, a Court’s divorce decree which divides property and debts, or a property settlement agreement incorporated into a divorce decree, may not be able to be modified. ARS 25-317(F). If you address it early enough you may be able to challenge the settlement or order depending upon how quickly you object to the order or decree at issue. The law is this area is very technical, and whether you have a remedy may also depend upon whether terms regarding property and debts are merged (this means whether the terms are contractual or became an order of the Court).
Prior to the entry of a divorce decree, it may be possible to ask that a property settlement agreement be modified or disregarded if it is unfair. ARS Section 25-317(B)-(D). However, once the decree of dissolution is entered, orders regarding property and debt become essentially non-modifiable.
That being said, there may be other avenues to set aside a property or debt division pursuant to a post-decree motion so long as adequate grounds apply, and so long as such is filed timely (generally within six months of the Court’s Decree). See the section of the website regarding Challenging Court Decisions and Orders. There may be other avenues for relief in some cases, such as the division of property and debts that were not mentioned in the divorce decree and are thus still subject to division. In some rare cases, a decree or settlement can be set aside for fraud upon the Court or or certain extreme circumstances.
It is always smart to consult with an experienced Phoenix family law attorney if you are not happy with the division of property and debts in your case. You will want to do this as soon as possible in order to avoid missing any deadlines.
We encourage you to call our office to schedule a consultation with one of our very experienced family law attorneys to see if it makes sense to file a petition to modify a Court order in your case.
