Child support delinquencies up

Deadbeat dads always have been a problem, but an ongoing recession just means there are more of them.

And there's also a growing number of men who had well-paying jobs when they divorced, but now are struggling to make support payments after they got laid off or furloughed as the economy faltered.

"Between 30 and 40 percent of the calls I get are for child support modifications," said Greg Daniels, an Athens divorce attorney.

"I've got several cases where the noncustodial parent had good employment and is skilled and capable of earning $4,000 to $5,000 a month and has consistently done that for years," Daniels said. "But then they are laid off, their unemployment benefits are finite, and there's not necessarily an end in sight. So what do you do?"

If a father can afford to hire an attorney, he can request a hearing for a judge to consider reducing child support.

"Judges are realistic," Daniels said. "If you have a parent who is asked to do with less child support, they look to see if the other parent has reduced luxuries and really is in a state of economic difficulties, like is there still a Porsche in the garage, a boat, lake house and those other things."

Most reduction requests are worked out through court-ordered mediation, Daniels said, and mothers often are understanding when dads truly are struggling.

"A lot depends on the relationships - people who had an amicable divorce or as time moved on learned to get along and don't have suspicions he or

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