I divorced my husband when he was unfaithful to me when our fourth (planned!) child was months old. He was very unhappy about being divorced but did come with me to France to help me settle the children in. All went ok for the first year or so.
Then he discovered the joys of batchelorhood - wine women and song, big time. And stopped paying child support or seeing/contacting the kids. He would ring me to boast of his latest conquest(s) but not ask or want to talk to the kids....When I remarried the calls calmed down; there had been weeks when he would ring daily, sometimes very late at night.
When I filled in my French tax return I stated that I had received no child support. To support this I had to press charges against him, see a judge, engage a lawyer etc etc.
The wheels of French justice have turned now and the final decision is that it is too difficult to get money from him and that, and I quote " he is not not paying child support intentionally!!" WTF? Oh, and because he said he couldn't afford a translator, the statement was considered to be legally not of good standing. The UK refused to co operate "against a British citizen". To stop me having a claim against him, he gleefully gave up work and told me this was why he was doing so.
He is living in Portugal with a girlfriend, in a smart Algarve appartment. He is a trustafarian and has over a dozen houses in the north of England from which he receives a revenue. I understand that he has started up a business in Portugal. He drives a new four by four and has a top of the range BMW motor bike. The last time he was here he spent his time with the children dragging them round clothes shops, frantically buying presents for his girlfriend.
He has not seen the children since 2002. He has not paid child support since then. He says it is my fault that he does not see the kids as he cannot afford a hotel room in Bordeaux and I am obviously uncaring as if I really wanted him to see his children, I would offer him a room in my house.
He owes about £20,000 in unpaid child support and is laughing, having pissed on us from a great height. He says if I hadn't divorced him, life would be hunky dory for all of us, so again, it is my fault he does not pay a penny towards their care.
What can/should I do? France has been a dead loss. Do I find a Portuguese/French speaking lawyer? UK lawyer living in Portugal? Portuguese lawyer here in Bordeaux?
Please, does anyone have any ideas. It is all so unfair.