Former NBA star accused of failure to pay child support

Besides the potential detriment to the child, the failure to pay child support can have significant negative effects on the parent who fails to pay. Many states will incarcerate an individual for failure pay child support in a timely manner, while others will order people to complete community service or other, less severe punishments. Whichever approach is taken, most people know that supporting a dependent through a child support agreement is viewed as a significant obligation by society – and the family courts which enforce the agreements.

Many of our Maryland readers are probably familiar with former NBA great Dennis Rodman. The widely known and often vilified Rodman has seen his fair share of media attention over the years. Recently, he has been involved in a serious child support dispute with his ex-wife over delinquent payments for his two young children. Rodman has been threatened with jail time for failure to pay before, and the sums involved in his case can seem staggering. One attorney for his ex-wife claimed that the unpaid amount was $850,000.

Now, at a recent hearing, Rodman was found in contempt of court. However, his attorneys were able to come to an agreement with his ex-wife’s attorneys, settling at an amount of $500,000 to be paid.

Although the current child support troubles for Rodman seemed to have been resolved, it appears the two parties still need to attempt an agreement on custody and visitation rights for their children. It looks like that discussion will be saved for another day.

When parents are fighting over child support, it can be to everyone’s benefit if the parents remember that child support is determined on the best interests on the child. A lot of factors can come into play, but that is the one determinant goal in most cases.

Source: Yahoo! Sports, “Dennis Rodman must pay $500K in child support,” Dec. 7, 2012