Factors to Consider with Child Support Matters
- In child support cases brought by the state, the custodial parent gets free counsel.
- Factors that are taken into consideration when determining the child support amount:
- Both parties’ income
- Child care (before/after/summer)
- Health Insurance
- Does the non-custodial parent have other child support obligations?
- In addition to child support, the non-custodial parent is usually required to split both uninsured medical expenses as well as extracurricular activities 50/50.
- Even though you may be unemployed, the Judge may still impute income based on past income history.
- If the non-custodial parent would prefer to relinquish their rights as a parent in order to avoid paying child support, it’s not that simple. Terminating parental rights is usually not an option.
- A child support case might not necessarily be brought on by the opposing party. If the custodial parent is receiving support from the County/State such as Food Stamps, WIC, Medicare, the State/County may enforce the non-custodial parent to pay child support in order to recuperate their money and get the other parent back on their feet.
- Most often, both pay stubs and tax returns are needed when determining child support, if you work a salaried job. However, if you work based on commissions, such as a Real Estate Agent, Car Salesman, etc. the courts may require that you provide additional information.
- The court will only look at gross monthly income when determining child support. (Gross income is before any taxes are taken out). Therefore, if one is paying for a house payment, student loans, car payment, credit card payments, etc., these debts will not be a determining factor. Only the gross yearly income will be considered the Child Support Calculation is established.
- That once established, child support can be altered, but only with a “Material Change in Circumstance.”
- If child payments are not made as required by the court, the non-custodial parent may face the following repercussions:
- Tax return withholding
- Garnishing of wages
- Garnishing of bank accounts
- Lottery winning withholding
- Suspension of driver’s license and passport
- Incarceration
