A judge has issued a jail threat to a farmer after stating that he prioritised spending €5,000 on feed for his animals ahead of providing for his two children.
At the Family Law Court, Judge John King said that the farmer spending the €5,000 he received in forestry grant payments this year on animal feed and not on his child maintenance arrears “is a clear contempt of court”.
Solicitor, Pamela Clancy for the man’s ex-wife and mother of their two children told Judge King that the last time they were in court in March, the man owed at the time €1,257 “and there have been only sporadic payments since”.
Ms Clancy told Judge King that the court ordered weekly maintenance is €75.
Judge King told the farmer: “I think you are playing games. I think if I sent you to jail for contempt until such time as when you discharge the arrears, the games would end.”
The farmer denied that he was playing games.
Ms Clancy said that her client and the man completed their divorce earlier this year and in the days leading up to the settlement, her client’s now-ex-husband made withdrawals totalling around €5,000 from his current account.
In response, Judge King said: “This man had €5,000 in cold, hard cash there which would have been sufficient to discharge the arrears debt.”
Solicitor for the man, Claire Vaughan of Colum N Doherty and Co Solicitors told Judge King “his explanation is that he spent it on farming to pay for feed for animals on his land”.
Ms Vaughan said: “He is a farmer of lands in the locality and as part of the divorce settlement, it was agreed that substantial lands will be sold and we would be asking that the arrears would be left stand until the land is sold.”
The farmer told Judge King that he has only €84 in his bank account.
Ms Vaughan stated that the lands are up for public auction during the month of May.
Ms Vaughan asked Judge King: “We would ask for leniency – he has substantial lands that are being sold.”
Judge King questioned how he could apply leniency in the case when there has been a wilful refusal to pay maintenance.
Ms Clancy said that the man’s ex-wife and their two children live together and “are dire financial circumstances”.
She said that the three are living in a two bedroom apartment with the mother and daughter sharing one bedroom.
Ms Clancy said that the father has failed to pay towards his son’s education this year which prevented his son from taking part in certain school activities in the current school year.
Ms Clancy said that on the last occasion in court the farmer absconded after Judge Mary Larkin told him to come up with the arrears money and a bench warrant was issued for his arrears after his failure to appear.
Judge King adjourned the case to May and warned the farmer that the arrears must be paid up by the adjourned date.
