CHILD SUPPORT
The way child support will be determined has changed.
Starting January 1, 2008, the child support rules loosen up and child support can be modified if there has been a "substantial change of circumstances" for either party that result in a modification of child support of at least 20% and $75.
If you filed a divorce, separation, or paternity action after January 1, 2007 the new support laws apply. The changes are these:
Both parties' gross incomes (used to be net income) are computed and subjected to the child support calculations. The old law took a certain percentage of the non-custodial parent’s net income. With the new law, both parent’s gross income will be used to calculate support.
Support is apportioned on the number of overnights the children spend with each parent. The law itself calculates time in percentages, but a good rule of thumb is that two weekend overnights and one weekday overnight, will mean that that parent will get a 12% discount on child support. Under the old law, the number of overnights was not taken into account.
Support is specifically unlinked to what custody is called. "Joint physical custody", "shared parenting time" "sole physical custody" are irrelevant to the computation of child support. The parent receiving the support remains solely obligated for the children's clothes, school supplies and activity costs, food at home, and all the other costs of raising children. That is often, but not always, less under the new law than under the old law. If you are divorcing under the new law it is smart to also negotiate sharing those costs of raising the children.
Medical insurance and costs will also be treated differently. The Court will look at insurance coverage available to both parents to determine which insurance plan is best for the children. Instead of equally dividing insurance and uninsured health and dental costs, the amount each parent pays will depend on their gross income and their child support calculation. What that means is that parents will pay a percentage of the costs rather than divide it 50-50. Again, it is more likely than not, that the primary parent will get less money.
Practice Areas: / Adoption / Child Support / Custody / Divorce / Domestic Partnership Agreements / Immigration / Mediation / Name Change / Orders for Protection / Property Division / Spousal Maintenance / Wills & Trusts /
|
