In cases of divorce, sometimes a child may come to despise one of their parents. These feelings may be the result of prodding by the other parent or it may have developed independently as a result of watching and experiencing the ravages of a divorce, or of course possibly due to a myriad of other reasons. Either way, these feelings can create a strong dislike of one parent who may be viewed by the child as flawed or having caused the divorce. This usually comes as a surprise to the “despised” parent. They likely still love the child and wish to see them. But when the affection is not mutual and this reality has fully sunk in, a parent may wonder why they are continuing to pay support for the child. Is child support really necessary when a child has expressed the desire to separate from one parent? The answer is simple: yes. Child support payments are still necessary even when a child no longer wants to see the paying parent.
No matter how much it hurts a parent or how ungrateful they find their children to be, child support payments must continue until it is terminated by law or by court order. The logic here is that parents have an obligation to provide for their children until the children reach an age when they can become self-supporting. A child may indeed hate their parents, but this does not put money in the child’s bank account or make them any more capable at self-support. Children remain as dependents regardless of what attitudes they harbor toward their parents. If a parent wishes to reduce or suspend child support payments, they must do so through other means. Examples of legitimate ways to reduce child support include providing proof that one’s income has decreased and shown that the child is no longer a dependent. However it is done, agreement by the other parent or an order of the court is required.