Divorce provisions for support liens and military families advanced

Senators advanced a bill May 4 related to support liens and military families in divorce cases.

LB673, introduced by Norfolk Sen. Mike Flood, would require a court to order a judgment creditor to pay a judgment debtor’s court costs and attorney fees when the judgment creditor has refused, without a good faith reason, to execute a release of the judgment for child support, spousal support or subordination of a lien.

The bill also would provide procedural protections in custody and visitation cases for military parents who are moving or deploying.

Flood said the bill was introduced to address cases where noncustodial parents have been current on their support payments but a custodial parent will not sign a lien for reasons other than good faith.

“There has to be somebody held accountable for not working with the other party,” he said.

A Judiciary Committee amendment, among other technical changes, would authorize rather than require courts to order the payment and would extend the military-related provisions to include members of the National Guard.

The amendment was adopted 39-0 and the bill advanced from general file on a 39-0 vote.