"Deadbeat parents: A failure in priorities"
(full text) - Written by Jenny Wilder,
From Boston University School of Law Alumni Magazine, Spring 1997. Used by permission.
In 1996, approximately 17 million children did not receive the parental financial support to which they were entitled. Nearly $34 billion of child support is uncollected annually in the United States.
Casey Hoffman (class of '68) is deeply concerned about these children. Five years ago, Hoffman started Child Support Enforcement* (CSE) in Austin, Texas, a private company that locates and prosecutes parents delinquent in court-ordered child support. They go after "deadbeat dads" (and the 10 percent of non-supporting parents who are "deadbeat moms") using comparable information sources available to government agencies. Today, CSE* employs more than 40 people; Hoffman expects to reach 90 by the end of the year and to double that in succeeding years.
In 1986, Hoffman moved to Texas from private practice in Boston. He had served as President of the Massachusetts Bar Association and as a member of the Governor's Child Support Commission and was well-versed in the problems of child support enforcement. In Texas, he assumed the position as Special Assistant Attorney General to direct that state's child support enforcement program. Between 1986 and 1991, Hoffman attracted considerable financial resources and talent to his operation. It was twice recognized by Congress as the most improved child support enforcement program in the country, and in 1990, Casey received the National Child Support Enforcement Association's Outstanding Individual Achievement Award.
But Hoffman was fundamentally frustrated. "Yes," he says, "we were praised for our successes, but we still never collected on more than 15 percent of the cases. There was no time to revel in our accomplishments because there was so much more to be done. Government agencies historically have never collected on more than 20 percent of their caseload -- they are simply swamped. The average caseload per worker in the country is 1,000, and in Texas it has been as high as 2,000." The decision to create a private child support enforcement company was his response to the myriad frustrations he was facing.
CSE* caseworkers handle no more than 350 clients at a time, and they do not accept cases where paternity is not established or court-ordered modifications are necessary. The firm receives a fee for services of 33 percent of recovered money in arrears. "Clients are willing to pay a contingency fee to receive money they would otherwise never see," says Hoffman. CSE* only accepts cases where more than $5,000 in back support is owed; they locate 90 percent of the delinquent parents they seek and collect from approximately 60 percent of those cases.
The enormity of the child support delinquency problem in the U.S., according to Casey Hoffman, reflects a deep failure of priorities in our society. "It's all about children coming first. If they really did, we wouldn't have a problem of these proportions. I see the work of our firm and our profession as essential for the country to retain its dignity by once again putting our children first."
Problems in priorities start in the divorce courts, according to Hoffman. "We have set up a win/lose adversarial system that creates such deep resentment between divorcing parents that the needs of children are often lost in the struggle. Excuses for noncompliance begin here, grounded in the anger generated in the divorce process. Then, the culture tolerates and supports the arrogance of 'deadbeats' who brag of beating the system and besting the former spouse. The connection to children is lost. At this stage of solving the problem, we must create a climate where enforcement is voluntary through fear of embarrassment, monetary penalties, and weekend jail terms."
"The culture can be changed," Hoffman continues. The 1992 Child Support Recovery Act made delinquency a federal crime, but since 1993, no more than 200 cases have been filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office. "Give the media a series of high-profile stories where the FBI pursues a true deadbeat parent. It would make a lot of people think twice. Delinquents need to be condemned publicly. Men need to speak out against other men who fail to pay, and we must make the connection between this unpaid money and the welfare of individual children."
Casey Hoffman writes and speaks out frequently for new ideas to attack the delinquency problem, and he has testified before the last two sessions of Congress. He believes strongly that particular focus is needed on welfare cases. "Nine out of ten welfare kids are owed child support. Today, up to 40 percent of our welfare dollars go to children whose noncustodial parents could afford to pay child support but don't. The poorest children should be cared for first." Hoffman also sees a role for a voucher system to allow individual parents in need to hire a private lawyer who would be paid at least partially by government funds.
Ironically, Casey Hoffman spends much of his time and energy pushing for legislative and social changes that would reduce his potential client base. The social consequences of delinquent child support clearly have given him grave concerns. "Of the cases we see, nearly 70 percent of the nonpaying parents never see or visit their kids. Perhaps they would see more of their children if they weren't hiding. Far too often they become invested in a second family and rationalize that care for a new family excuses neglect of the first. When the moral fabric of family life is unraveling right before your eyes, it is not very difficult to speak out for changing a system that fails our nation's children. We must all do what we can to end the suffering of parents and children caused by unpaid child support."
"I am concerned about what the dimensions of this problem say about values in this country," continues Hoffman. "We're not putting our priorities in place to stop the problem. We must change the system and culture to deliver a clear message... you will be found and you will
be held responsible. Our country will do all that it can to protect our children."
* CSE Child Support Enforcement now offers its services to families as Supportkids.
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