Q: My ex husband filed bankruptcy chap. 7 and was discharged from a car payments that were for spousal support.

A: First question: car payments = child support? I don't understand. If a judge actually ordered this quid pro quo arrangement rather than monthly payments, I would be surprised. So, the short answer is that in all states it is illegal to try and bankrupt child support, can't be done. It is an exception to a discharge. So, I am assuming that the arrangement for "your car payments = child support" is just that, an agreement between yourselves and NOT a court-ordered arrangement. SO, most judges will allow couples to screw around with their agreements "on the side," but when it falls apart and "push comes to shove," the court will point to the Decree where it says "father shall pay the sum of $332 monthly as and for the support of the minor child(ren)" and look at the father and say, "I realize that you and mom had your own little deal where you were going to make payments for her car loan and she would forgive monthly child support, but THAT'S NOT THE WAY I ORDERED IT, and YOU SIR, ARE $3,4,5,000 BEHIND ON CHILD SUPPORT. Then the judge is going to look at you and say, "maam your remedy is simply to ask Support Enforcement to open a file for you and collect ALL those back payments, even the ones that yaall told me were "quid pro quo" for child support! Father's face will look sick and blank-looking when he realizes that "you can fool some of the people some of the time, and one or two people all the time, but you can NOT fool the judge that set a child support order, ANY TIME!"

A: It depends on how your agreement was worded. Consult your divorce lawyer and a bankruptcy lawyer who can help you.