DECISION and ORDER Currently before the Court is an application brought by Defendant, DS, as an Order to Show Cause, which was signed by the Court on February 2, 2024, and seeks to hold Plaintiff, KS, in contempt of court for allegedly claiming all three of the parties’ children as dependents on her 2022 income tax return in violation of the parties’ Judgment of Divorce. In addition, Defendant requests an Order (1) directing Plaintiff to file an amended 2022 tax return and pay any fees/penalties that Defendant has incurred as a result of his tax return being rejected; and (2) an award of attorneys’ fees and costs. Plaintiff has opposed Defendant’s application and has filed a cross-Order to Show Cause, which was signed by the Court on March 21, 2024, that requests modification of the parties’ Judgment of Divorce such that she will be allowed to claim the children on her 2022 tax return and on every annual return thereafter. After carefully considering the parties’ respective submissions and having heard and duly considered argument from the parties on March 26, 2024, Defendant’s contempt application is GRANTED, in part, and Plaintiff’s application to modify the parties’ Judgment of Divorce is GRANTED for the reasons set forth below. I. RELEVANT BACKGROUND The parties were married on August 3, 2002, and have three unemancipated children, who were born during the marriage. Plaintiff commenced a divorce action on July 21, 2016, which was subsequently granted on July 18, 2017, after the parties entered an oral stipulation of settlement that was placed on the record on May 22, 2017. With respect to the child tax credits, the parties agreed as follows: For every odd numbered year starting with the year 2017[,] the Mother shall have the right of claiming [CHILD #1 and CHILD #2] as exemptions on her Federal and State income tax returns and the Father shall have the right of claiming the child [CHILD #3], as an exemption [on] his income tax return. For every even numbered year starting with the year 2018 (if the parents do not file jointly)[,] and every even numbered year thereafter[,] the Father shall have the right of claiming [CHILD #1 and CHILD #2] as exemptions and the Mother shall have the right of claiming [CHILD #3] as an exemption. Defendant argues that Plaintiff claimed all three children on her 2022 tax return in contravention of the above-noted terms. In support of his application, Defendant submitted an affidavit stating that he followed the provisions of the above quoted agreement by claiming CHILD #1 and CHILD #2 when he filed his 2022 income tax return. Specifically, Defendant’s affidavit states that he was “notified by the IRS that Plaintiff, KS, had claimed CHILD #1 and CHILD #2 as exemptions,” which was then discussed with “Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s attorney Darlene O’Kane and it is Plaintiff’s position that she is allowed to claim the two children because Defendant is not current on his child support obligation.” (Def.’s Aff. at
