Background
Tina B. and Brandon T., who were never married, share one child. A May 2023 family-court order established a custodial arrangement and required Brandon to pay Tina $400 per month in child support. Brandon later petitioned to modify support but withdrew the petition after the parties privately agreed that he would instead pay $150 per month. The family court never approved that agreement or modified the existing support order.
After Tina filed several contempt and modification petitions, the family court conducted a November 2025 hearing. Its January 2026 order declined to hold Brandon in contempt, established a more detailed parenting plan, accepted the parties’ agreement reducing support to $150 per month beginning July 7, 2023, and directed the Bureau for Child Support Enforcement to recalculate arrearages using that reduced amount. Tina appealed, and the Bureau opposed the retroactive child-support reduction.
The Court’s Holding
The Intermediate Court of Appeals affirmed the family court’s refusal to hold Brandon in contempt. The family court had not found that he intentionally and without good cause violated the parenting plan, and it acted within its discretion by admonishing him, directing compliance, and adopting a more structured parenting plan.
The court reversed the retroactive reduction of child support. A family court generally may modify child support only prospectively and cannot cancel accrued installments absent fraud or another judicially cognizable circumstance affecting the original award. Because Brandon had withdrawn his modification petition, no petition remained pending, and the parents’ private agreement could not waive the child’s right to support. The case was remanded for a new order calculating arrearages under the court-ordered $400 monthly obligation.
Key Takeaways
- A family court’s decision not to impose contempt for alleged parenting-plan violations receives substantial appellate deference.
- Parents cannot privately waive or contract away a child’s right to court-ordered support.
- A withdrawn modification petition cannot support retroactive reduction of accrued child-support installments.
Why It Matters
The decision underscores that informal agreements between parents do not alter an existing child-support order. Unless and until a court enters a valid modification, the ordered amount continues to accrue and may determine the obligor’s arrearages.
It also illustrates the distinction between enforcing parenting-time provisions through contempt and addressing future conflict through a more detailed parenting plan: absent the required findings for contempt, a family court may choose prospective measures instead.