If you or a loved one is going through a divorce, there are several things you should know about child support. These things, as given by child support lawyers, include:
You are not obligated to pay for child support during college
If your child has recently graduated and is heading into their first year of college, you should note that you don’t have to foot their college costs.
In most states, an individual who has reached the age of majority cannot be subject to an order for child maintenance. In most states, you are no longer liable for child support once your child turns eighteen if they are still enrolled in school; however, if they graduate from high school, you are.
While this is the case, unless you and your spouse have mutually agreed to the contrary, you are not compelled to pay for college expenditures.
In a divorce meeting, you should discuss your goals for college fees, particularly if you have children who are getting close to adulthood.
Since they are your children, you can cover their college costs, but you should be cautious about the agreement you get yourself into. To be safe, avoid getting into a contract that requires you to continue paying those costs after your child reaches adulthood.
One of the reasons for this is that the court cannot change those costs or duties. Should you agree to pay for your child’s college education, you will be bound to do so indefinitely, regardless of changes to your employment status, health, or other circumstances.
This is because the court lacks the authority to alter the agreement if you lose your job or become disabled.
To stay safe and avoid being sued for child support neglect, be ultra-cautious during the negotiation stages. To ensure you don’t get into an agreement you will regret later, have your lawyer with you during the negotiations.
You can make modifications to your child support payments
If your income has drastically decreased due to a change in employment, and you can now not pay your child support obligations, you can change your payments.
In most states, you can request a revision whenever your income or the other party’s income significantly changes. For example, you can change your child support obligation every two years without evidence of a change in your financial situation.
If your custody changed, that would be another way to adjust your child support. If your children moved in with you and things went differently than they did during your previous divorce or custody dispute, you may need to adjust your child support to reflect the new living arrangements.
Naturally, to change that support, you must submit a petition to the court, and the judge must approve any changes made to child support. You will also have access to the other party’s records to ensure that the amount was calculated accurately.
To show the specifics of your potential new custody arrangement, you must also turn over your income records.
Additionally, the court would need to certify that your revised child support obligation complies with the child support laws in your area.
You can file a motion for contempt.
If you are the custodial parent and the other party has refused to make the child support payments, you can always submit a petition or a motion for contempt.
In terms of case number, that would be a new case, but the judge—assuming the judge is still sitting on the bench—would still be the same as before, and they would wish to uphold their earlier ruling.
If that’s the case, it might result in a payment plan if there are unpaid child support arrears, or it might result in jail time if the offending party is unwilling or unable to pay child support, fails to appear in court, or refuses to comply with the lawyer requests for access to their pay stubs or other documentation.
A person who commits contempt may be subject to jail time or a payment plan. The severity of the offence will be based on the amount owing and the length of time the offender has disregarded the court’s ruling.
During the case, the court will consider any unique circumstances you may have, such as if your spouse has moved out of state or has refused to pay child support, or if there are any recordings or text messages that indicate they are intentionally failing to pay.
The courts will consider your case’s specific facts and circumstances when determining how to proceed with any contempt action, weighing the possibility of jail time against reparation.
The child support amount is based on many factors.
The amount of child support you must pay is based on several factors, the most important being your gross income, which is the amount you are paid before taxes and retirement contributions are deducted. It’s the big figure that appears at the top of your pay stub.
Most people are frequently unhappy with this type of calculation because they believe you can only pay what you put in your pocket. Unfortunately, many states do not deduct retirement contributions or any other charitable contributions from your child support amount.
It determines your presumed child support amount by taking into account both your gross income and the gross income of the other party to balance things out.
While this is the case, you can always modify the amount of child support you pay. You should work with your family lawyers Fairfax VA and file a motion to reduce the amount you have to pay. Remember that you must show proof of a change in your earnings for the motion to stick.
