Opinion ID: 2035565
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Assignment of Support Obligations

Text: The Court of Appeals held that an assignment of a support obligation is no longer enforceable by contempt as it constitutes an amount owed to the state by the delinquent parent and, thus, becomes enforceable as any other money judgment. 612 N.E.2d at 1093. Because a money judgment for delinquent child support is enforceable by contempt, the conclusion of the Court of Appeals in this regard is based upon an incorrect premise. We nevertheless address whether Donna's assignment of her right to collect support to the state altered in any way the remedies that were available. We begin with the well-settled principle of contract law that a valid assignment gives the assignee neither greater nor lesser rights than those held by the assignor. Rasp v. Hidden Valley Lake, Inc. (1988), Ind. App., 519 N.E.2d 153; Indiana & Michigan Elec. Co. v. Terre Haute Industries (1984), Ind. App., 467 N.E.2d 37, 42. Unless a contrary intent is shown, the assignee stands in the shoes of the assignor. Donna was a participant in the Title IV-D Child Support Enforcement Program of the Federal Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C.A. § 652-66, and she was, therefore, required to assign her right to collect support payments to the state. The Title IV-D Program in Indiana, operated in each county by the office of the prosecuting attorney, Ind. Code Ann. § 12-17-2-18 (West Supp. 1993), is designed to ensure that children are provided adequate financial support by their parents. Parents receiving payments under Aid to Families with Dependent Children, 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 601-10, are required to assign support rights they have against the non-custodial parent for the child support to the state. 42 U.S.C.A. § 602(a)(26) (West 1993). Other single parents may participate in the program voluntarily. 42 U.S.C.A. § 654(6) (West Supp. 1993). In return, the state is an active participant in proceedings to collect child support obligations. [4] Donna is a voluntary participant in the Title IV-D program. As such, 100% of the amounts collected by the state are distributed to her on behalf of her children. [5] In participating in the Title IV-D program, Donna assigned to the state her rights to collect child support. We find nothing to indicate that Donna did not intend to assign her right to seek enforcement of court orders through contempt. It follows, then, that if contempt was a remedy available to Donna, contempt was a remedy available to the state. Accordingly, the trial court had the authority under these circumstances to use its contempt power.