Is child-support paid directly or through a State disbursement unit?
In an uncontested, agreed-upon divorce, the parties can agree on whether the child-support payments should be paid directly by the payor, or paid through a state disbursement unit who keeps track of the payments and allocates those funds to the recipient. If there is an agreed-upon case, I would allow the payor to make payments directly to the recipient, if that’s what the parties desired. In a case where there is vitriol, and the party simply cannot agree on anything, I would recommend or require that the child support payments be paid through a State disbursement unit. The advantages of a State disbursement unit are this: the recipient does not have to contact the person paying the support. The money will flow directly out of the payor’s paycheck; it will be submitted to the State disbursement unit; and the state disbursement unit will then pay those funds for child support to the recipient. It basically takes the friction, if there is any between the parties at this point, out of the picture. I highly recommend that child support payments be paid through a State disbursement unit and not directly between the parties.
