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Actor Jon Cryer: An Example Of Why Downward Modification Of Child Support Is No Piece Of Cake

By Donald P. Schweitzer

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 23Feb2012 Word count: 716 Viewed: 71 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

This article will analyze this recently published appellate decision (In Re Marriage of Cryer ) that should serve as glaring example as to why individuals should proceed carefully before filing such motions.

In "In Re Marriage of Cryer," we see the failed attempt of a famous actor, Jon Cryer, to modify child support. Jon Cryer, known for his leading role on a popular sitcom called "Two And A Half Men," married his wife in the year 2000. During the same year, the parties gave birth to their minor child. However, four years later, after Mr. Cryer completed his first season of "Two And A Half Men", the parties separated and filed for divorce.

In 2004, Mr. Cryer entered into a Stipulated Judgment for Dissolution pursuant to which he bought Ms. Cryer a condominium, and agreed to pay her a sum of $10,000.00 per month in child support, based on his rather high income and a 35 percent timeshare with the parties' minor child.

In May 2009, the minor child suffered an injury while in Ms. Cryer's home. The Department of Children and Family Services subsequently filed a dependency action, and removed the child from Ms. Cryer's care and placed the child with Mr. Cryer. As a result, Mr. Cryer filed an Order to Show Cause for downward modification of child support based on his increased time share and Ms. Cryer's decreased timeshare with the minor child. This motion was filed in August 2009, at which time Mr. Cryer admitted that he earned $327,000.00 per month and had liquid assets amounting to $7 million.

Judge Pellman of the Los Angeles Superior Court, the presiding judge over this matter, denied Mr. Cryer's request in part and granted it in part. Upon hearing Mr. Cryer's arguments, she ordered that his child support obligation be reduced to $8,000.00 per month, from the original $10,000.00 per month, to reflect his increased time with the child. However, Judge Pellman declined to reduce his child support obligation to the guideline amount of zero, because she believed that ordering child support based on the guideline formula would be "unjust and inappropriate."

Judge Pellman also determined that Mr. Cryer was an extraordinarily high-income earner and found that it was in the child's best interest to come home to his mother's house in the manner that he was accustomed to living in Mr. Cryer's house. The evidence showed that Ms. Cryer was financially dependent on Mr. Cryer, and that she would not be able to maintain the house if support was drastically reduced. Based on her extensive prior experience as a judge in Juvenile Court, Judge Pellman is very familiar with the process that occurs after the Department of Child and Family Services files a petition in Juvenile Court. Judge Pellman noted that the dependency action was in its early stages and that the Juvenile Court could modify custody at any time and return the child to Ms. Cryer as the child's primary caretaker. Thus, it would not be in the child's best interest to grant Mr. Cryer's request for guideline support.

Mr. Cryer believed that Judge Pellman erred in ruling on his request for modification of child support and appealed her decision. On appeal, however, Judge Pellman's rulings were affirmed. The Court of Appeal held that Judge Pellman did not err by reducing child support to $8,000.00 per month because of the potential for a quick change in custody and visitation, the special circumstances related to the great disparity in the parties' incomes, and the trial court's findings that it was in the child's best interest that guideline child support not be ordered.

Unfortunately for Mr. Cryer, Judge Pellman also ordered him to pay all of Ms. Cryer's attorney's fees related to the multiple hearings on this matter, which amounted to more than $40,000.00. Thus, Mr. Cryer not only lost in his attempt to lower child support to the guideline amount, but he also got stuck paying the bill for his failed efforts.

In light of this decision, I think one can conclude that modifying child support is not as easy as it looks. If you don't believe me, ask Jon Cryer.

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