When a parent seeks a modification of a child support order, it may typically entail a parent seeking more support than she or he currently receives. However, parents may also seek a child support modification based on the belief that they are paying much more than what is necessary for the care and welfare of a shared child in Missouri. Recently, movie star Halle Berry went to court to seek a reduction in the amount of child support she pays her ex-boyfriend.

Berry, who is 48 years old, had a child in 2008 with her then boyfriend, a model she met at a photo shoot. The couple broke up in 2010. She pays $16,000 a month in child support for the child. She reportedly believes the amount, which is $192,000 a year, is being used so her ex-boyfriend can refrain from having to work.

The movie star wants the amount of child support reduced to $3,000. It was last year that the two agreed to the $16,000 a month in support, and Berry also agreed to pay for school tuition for the now 7-year-old and also agreed to split any expenses related to health care. Berry was also ordered at the time to pay for attorney fees in the case.

The modification sought in this case is a drastic reduction in child support. When a parent in Missouri or elsewhere seeks a reduction, supporting documents or other evidence of justification for a reduction may impact the case. Parents typically may seek a reduction when one parent has a substantial change income or the needs of the child have changed in some measurable way.

Source: New York Daily News, “Halle Berry faces ex-boyfriend Gabriel Aubry in secret trial over child support“, Nancy Dillon, July 14, 2015