Opinion ID: 2509358
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: overpayment of support

Text: Mother argues the family court erred in awarding Father a credit for an alleged overpayment in child support from the date this action was filed. We agree. The family court has the discretion to award retroactive child support from the filing date of the action upon a proper showing of a change in the child's needs or the supporting parent's ability to pay. Ables v. Gladden, 378 S.C. 558, 567-68, 664 S.E.2d 442, 447 (2008) (quoting Thornton v. Thornton, 328 S.C. 96, 115, 492 S.E.2d 86, 96 (1997); Henderson v. Henderson, 298 S.C. 190, 196, 379 S.E.2d 125, 129 (1989)). An increase or decrease may be ordered upon a showing of a change of condition at the time the modification is ordered. Herring v. Herring, 286 S.C. 447, 453, 335 S.E.2d 366, 369 (1985). The temporary order set Father's monthly child support obligation at $1,018.33, based upon Mother's monthly pay of $1,600 and Father's monthly pay of $8,741. The order also left intact Father's obligation to pay Mother thirty-five percent of his annual bonuses. However, the final order decreased Father's obligation to $923, based upon Mother's monthly income of $3,300 and Father's monthly income of $10,666, and inexplicably reduced the percentage of Father's annual bonus payable as support from thirty-five percent to ten percent. The court also terminated Father's obligation to pay $400 per month towards Collin's college education. Based upon these new figures, the court found Father had overpaid support during the pendency of the case. Retroactively applying both figures to the monies already paid from the filing of this action, the court found that Father had overpaid $2,669.24 in monthly support and $9,998.05 in annual support, and that Father could reduce his future monthly payments by fifteen percent until the overpayment was discharged. This was error. We find the final monthly support order was based upon erroneous calculations of the parties' income. Further, the bonus payment reduction from thirty-five percent to ten percent was ordered without any stated explanation. We find the calculations contained in the temporary order correct and reinstate those monthly and annual support terms. Accordingly, Father has made no overpayment of support during the pendency of this action.