Former NFL football player, Terrell Owens, reached an agreement on July 19, 2012 to resolve his back child support. Prior to the agreement, he was facing a threat of contempt. He is paying some $5,000 a month in child support. In Massachusetts, the standard of contempt is defiance of a clear and unequivocal order and child support may not be modified retroactively. A debtor must pay their back arrearages. This is done by adding 25% onto whatever the child support guidelines say. Child support issues are a common problem in today’s recessionary economy for folks. Hope this blog helps shed some light on this issue.