Kansas lawmaker’s ex-wife seeks unpaid money from him in court

The ex-wife of a Kansas lawmaker alleged in a court filing last month that he owes her nearly $4,300 and is in violation of their divorce decree.

Rep. Jim Ward, D-Wichita, was required to pay his ex-wife, Karen Ward, $12,000 over four installments for their house as part of the couple’s 2014 divorce.

His ex-wife alleged in a February court filing that Ward failed to pay a $3,000 installment that was due in December. The case is before the Sedgwick County District Court.

She also said the lawmaker improperly withheld $250 from a March 2015 installment and did not pay his full share of the couple’s 2013 federal income tax liability, bringing the total amount sought in the filing to $4,279.

Karen Ward said in a phone call that she also has not received a $3,000 payment that was due this month and would likely amend her motion to include that amount as well.

She would not comment further on the case.

Jim Ward said he was withholding the payments until he and his ex-wife were able to resolve some issues in court.

“My ex-wife and I are disputing terms of our divorce,” Ward said. “Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon in divorces for people to disagree about what was said and when it was said.

“Once those disputes are settled, the money will be paid. I’m not paying until I know what the amount due is …and we have a significant dispute about the amount due.”

A hearing in the case is scheduled for the end of April. Ward said it probably would be postponed until the end of the legislative session.

“When the session is over, we’ll go to court and resolve these issues,” he said.

This story was originally published March 31, 2016 at 6:13 AM with the headline "Kansas lawmaker’s ex-wife seeks unpaid money from him in court."