Unpaid Child Support Could Cause You to Lose Your Medical License

Whether through a divorce or breakup, court-ordered child support payments often rankle the sentiments of the person ordered to make payments. This could be because the person making payments (payor) did not want the child in the first place, or did not support the divorce or breakup; other times, it is because the payor can see that payments are benefitting the child’s other parent, rather than the child. Job loss, addiction, or criminal behavior could also lead to nonpayment of child support.

Whatever the reason, people sometimes fall behind on child support payments and get caught up in the Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS), the legal system intended to resolve child support issues. While the people who work in this system are undoubtedly well-intentioned, they are not always well-informed or considerate as they work to enforce child support orders. If you are behind on child support payments and are worried that your professional medical license could suffer, read on.

How Does Indiana Enforce Child Support Orders?

The longer a child support order goes unpaid, the more aggressive DCS becomes in pursuing payments. Courts may require parents to pay child support directly out of their wages, or through intercepting federal income tax refunds. Rarely does a payor reach the point of having their professional license sanctioned without facing other severe consequences.

However, when the state targets a parent’s professional license, the parent’s ability to practice their profession is targeted, potentially jeopardizing the parent’s ability to make money and payments in the first place. Not only could a state directly target a professional license for sanctions, but a parent who is found in contempt of court for not paying child support could also face an investigation by the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana, which can investigate criminal behavior and suspend licenses accordingly. These investigations may be compounded by behaviors that often accompany serious cases of unpaid child support, including drug or alcohol abuse or even domestic violence.

You may need to prove to the board that you are on track to recover from addiction and that you are committed to meeting your legal obligations to your child. Doing this can involve extensive communication and documenting your behavioral changes, a sensitive process that is best handled with professional assistance.

Call an Indiana Medical License Defense Lawyer Now

Whether you are facing medical license suspension over a domestic dispute or for any other reason, do not take chances. Get the help you need from an experienced, knowledgeable Indiana medical license defense attorney with The Law Offices of Joseph J. Bogdan, LLC. Our Indiana medical license defense lawyer works carefully on every case to maximize the possibility that you can keep your license free of sanctions and continue practicing in your profession. Call us today at 463-219-2612 to schedule a free, confidential consultation.

Sources:

https://www.in.gov/dcs/files/IV-D_Policy_Manual_Chapter_12_Section_04_03.pdf

https://www.in.gov/dcs/child-support/custodial-party-information/child-support-orders/