Julie Fowler

Nominated one of "10 Best" Attorneys for Nebraska by the American Institute of Family Law Attorneys in 2015. Winner of Michael W. Amdor Memorial Excellence in Legal Research Award.

Nebraska

Since 2007

Attorney

Law Office of Julie Fowler, PC, LLO

Current

Creighton University School of Law

J.D.

Michael W. Amdor Memorial Excellence in Legal Research Award

Fourth Judicial District, Douglas County, Nebraska

2009

Nebraska Bar Association  # 23649

Attorney

2007 - Current

Q. Owed $31,000 after terminating NP contract due to mental health; advised legal steps in NE?

May 7, 2025

A: In some circumstances, employment law does allow the employment contract to include an employee having a duty to pay back the employer for on-the-job training costs or the cost of schooling that the employee received for free from the employer with the idea that it will be at no cost to the employee if the employee stays on for at least a certain amount of time. Thus, if your contract has terms similar to this, it may be enforceable, depending on the specific facts and terms. The specific facts and specific terms of your contract really matter here. You will want to do a consult with an employment law attorney about your options and do so asap.

Q. Can I reclaim child support if I have had full custody post-divorce for 4 months?

May 7, 2025

A: You should file a modification action promptly if you want to change custody and child support. Generally, the Court can't modify child support back sooner than the month after filing. The court can do a later date but generally can't order an earlier date. If you continue to pay child support without filing a modification, the Court generally won't order the other parent to pay you back. However, under the right facts, the Court can take this type of situation into consideration and I've seen the Court issue an equitable credit or similar order to help make things "fair." You can ask for such as part of the modification action. Generally you do want to file the modification asap and promptly file a motion to terminate child support, suspend child support, or other type of motion as part of the modification action to ask child support to stop when you have physical possession of the child full-time. Sometimes your best course of action also depends on whether the other parent will work with you or not. Will the other parent agree to terminate the child support and acknowledge that the child is residing with you full-time? Also, are you seeking child support from the other parent or just asking to terminate support at this time? Your specific facts and wants in the case determine your best course of action. ... Read More

Q. Is my ex responsible for the first $480 of medical expenses based on a non-modified agreement?

April 14, 2025

A: When the Court looks at enforcing the terms of a court order, the Court looks at the actual language of the Court order. While it is the standard for the custodial parent to pay the first $480 (now $250) in unreimbursed health/medical expenses, not all orders have that language. For example, many joint physical custody orders do not include the first $480/$250 language and instead the parties start sharing these expenses from the first dollar owed. Other times, the parties agree to a deviation of child support (an amount different than in the child support guidelines) so they also do something different than the first $480/$250. Thus, just because the term is common, doesn't mean that the Court will assume the language is there if it isn't actually written in the Order. If you bring an action to enforce the order, the Court generally won't enforce terms that aren't actually stated in the order.

If you want to change the terms of your order, you could file a modification action. If you believe there was an error in drafting and the order is missing an agreed-upon term, then you could try requesting the court "nunc pro tunc" the order to fix the mistake due to the scrivener's error. However, you would need some proof that the term was agreed upon and the Court may not be willing to change/add the term if you've waited too long to correct the drafting mistake. ... Read More