Title 25
Arizona Revised Statutes
18 sections
A. In a proceeding in which the court orders a person to pay support the court shall, and in a proceeding in which the court orders a person to pay spousal maintenance the court may, assign to the person or agency entitled to receive the support or spousal maintenance that portion of the person's income necessary to pay the amount ordered by the court. In a proceeding in which spousal maintenance is ordered to be paid the court shall order the assignment on either party's request.
B. A person who is obligated by an order to pay support or spousal maintenance, the person to whom support or spousal maintenance is ordered to be paid or the department or its agent in a title IV-D case may file a verified request with the clerk of the superior court requesting the clerk to issue an ex parte order of assignment for support or spousal maintenance. The ex parte order of assignment may include a payment for current support and any other support, current spousal maintenance, spousal maintenance arrearages and interest on spousal maintenance arrearages. A request filed by the department or its agent need not be verified. The request shall state:
1. The name of the person or agency entitled to receive support or spousal maintenance.
2. The monthly amount of any current support and the monthly amount of any spousal maintenance ordered by the court.
3. The specific amount requested for any support arrearages, spousal maintenance arrearages or interest.
4. The name and address of the payor to whom it is requested the order of assignment be directed and the name of the person obligated to pay support or spousal maintenance.
C. After receipt of a request for an ex parte order of assignment the clerk of the superior court, without a hearing or notice to the person obligated to pay support or spousal maintenance, shall issue an order of assignment of that portion of the person's income as is sufficient to pay the amount requested to the person or agency entitled to receive the support or spousal maintenance. The order of assignment shall include the social security number of the obligated person. On issuance of an ex parte order of assignment, the clerk shall issue a notice directed to the obligor in substantially the following form, which shall also be in Spanish:
Notice
To: The obligor (the person ordered to pay support or spousal maintenance)
This is to notify you that part of your income or other monies is being taken away by the enclosed order of assignment that was issued on a request for an order of assignment that also is enclosed. The order of assignment has been issued for currently accruing child support or spousal maintenance, or both, based on the requesting party's claim that you are obligated to pay this. In addition, the requesting party may be claiming a right to collect other support, as defined in section 25-500, Arizona Revised Statutes, arrearages on spousal maintenance or interest on a judgment for unpaid spousal maintenance.
If you believe the enclosed order of assignment is improper or unlawful, that your property is exempt by law or that your employer or other payor is withholding more than is permitted by law, you may request a hearing before the superior court. You must file a request to terminate or adjust the order of assignment on forms provided by the clerk of the court within seven days after your receipt of the order for assignment, request for an order of assignment and this notice. If you request a hearing, it will be held no more than ten days after you file your request with the court.
Here are some other important things you should know:
The order of assignment is effective immediately on service of the order on your employer or another payor. The first employer or payor served shall not withhold or deduct amounts specified in the ex parte order of assignment for fourteen calendar days from the date of service to allow you, the obligor, an opportunity to contest the order of assignment as provided in section 25-504, Arizona Revised Statutes. A future employer or payor may begin deductions sooner than the fourteen day period after the order of assignment is received.
If you request a hearing, the court, after considering the financial resources of both parties and the reasonableness of the positions each party has taken, may order a party to pay a reasonable amount to the other for the attorney fees and costs of filing or defending the request.
Under state law (section 33-1131, Arizona Revised Statutes) no more than one-half of your disposable earnings for any pay period may be taken to satisfy an order issued for support or spousal maintenance. The amount of disposable earnings exempt from the order of assignment must be paid to you when due. Disposable income means the remaining portion of your wages, salary or compensation for personal services, including bonuses and commissions, or otherwise, and includes payments pursuant to a pension or retirement program or a deferred compensation plan, after deducting from such earnings the amounts required by law to be withheld.
An employer or other payor who receives the order of assignment may deduct from amounts due to you one dollar for each pay period, but not more than four dollars per month, for costs. The employer or payor also must deduct a monthly amount for the support payment handling fee required by state law (section 25-510, Arizona Revised Statutes).
The employer or other payor on whom the order of assignment is served will continue to withhold the amount set in the order and will forward the payment to the support payment clearinghouse until you file with the clerk one of the following:
1. A verified request to adjust the order of assignment, and the court adjusts the order of assignment because there has been a change of circumstances since the time of the issuance of the order or there is other good cause to do so.
2. A verified request for a hearing to terminate the order of assignment and, after a hearing, the court terminates the order of assignment if all obligations have been satisfied or will be satisfied within ninety days.
3. A notarized stipulation stating that the obligation to pay support or spousal maintenance has ended and that all arrearages either have been satisfied or have been waived, and the clerk terminates the order of assignment.
An employer may not refuse to hire, may not discharge or may not otherwise discipline you as a result of the order of assignment. If you are wrongfully refused employment, discharged or otherwise disciplined you may recover damages suffered, plus reinstatement if appropriate, plus reasonable attorney fees and costs incurred against the employer.
Unless a court has expressly ordered otherwise, you must notify the clerk of the court or the support payment clearinghouse in writing of the address of your residence and of your employment and, within ten days, of a change in either one. Your failure to do so may subject you to sanctions for contempt of court, including reasonable attorney fees and costs pursuant to state law (section 25-504, subsection R, Arizona Revised Statutes). Official notices will be delivered to you at the most recent addresses you have provided to the clerk or support payment clearinghouse.
D. Any order of assignment shall be issued only for support, spousal maintenance, spousal maintenance arrearages, interest on spousal maintenance arrearages and handling fees. The order of assignment shall state the total amount that the payor shall withhold. The order of assignment also shall specify the monthly amount of current support and any other payment ordered for support, the monthly amount of any current spousal maintenance, the monthly amount of any spousal maintenance arrearages and any monthly interest payment. If the obligor's disposable earnings from the primary employer or other payor do not meet the support obligation, the court shall issue an order of assignment to a secondary employer or other payor of the obligor in order to meet the full support obligation.