Workers' Comp Benefits Exemption from Creditors Claims In North Carolina

In State v. Miller, 77 N.C. App. 436, 335 S.E.2d 187 (1985), the Court held that the exemption of workers' compensation benefits from the claims of creditors did not apply to an order for child support. The Court held that the "obligation to support one's children is not a 'debt' in the legal sense of the word, and . . . helping to sustain the dependants of employees disabled on the job is one of the main purposes of our Workers' Compensation Act." Id. at 438-39, 335 S.E.2d at 188-89.