CHILD SUPPORT

St. Johns County Child Support Lawyer

When divorce occurs in Florida, there are many considerations that need to be made that is why it is important to consult a Child Support Lawyer | St Johns County. This is especially true in cases that involve children. Florida requires that both parents provide for the support of their child(ren). The Florida legislature has enacted statutes that ensure that needs of children are met. Child support and child custody are often contentious issues that are both of the utmost importance, so selecting a lawyer that you have confidence in to represent your case is important.

Determining the Amount of Child Support with your Child Support Lawyer

Many family law clients are concerned about amount of support they will be required to pay. There is not a set amount the each parent must pay in support for each child. Child support is calculated utilizing child support guidelines found in Florida Statute Sec. 61.30 which provides a presumptive amount of support based on the combined income of the parties. The presumptive amount of support is then modified by the percentage of overnights enjoyed by each parent, the allocation of federal dependency tax exemptions, the amount that a parent contributes to provide health insurance of the child(ren) and work related day care expenses.

In addition to providing guidelines for child support, Florida law allows the parties to deviate from child support guidelines. If one or both parents seek to deviate more than five (5%) percent (greater or less) than the guidelines child support amount, a motion to deviate from guidelines must be filed with the Court.

Here are some factors courts will consider when deviating from guidelines:

1) Extraordinary medical, psychological, educational, or dental expenses;
2) Seasonal variations in one or both parent’s income;
3) Age(s) of the child(ren), taking into consideration the greater needs of older child(ren);
4) Special needs that have been met traditionally within the family budget even though the fulfilling of those needs will cause support to exceed the guidelines;
5) The amount of time each child will spend with each parent under the shared parental arrangement
6) The station in life of each parent and each child;
7) The standard of living experienced by the entire family during the marriage;

Modification of Child Support

Parents can modify child support they are paying or receiving based on a substantial change of circumstances. Examples of substantial changes of circumstances are involuntary job loss or substantial increases in income. If there has been a substantial change in circumstances, it’s important to act quickly. Florida court will generally not modify child support prior to the date of filing of a modification petition; therefore, it’s important to file a modification petition as soon as possible to avoid incurring additional child support arranges or miss out on an increase of child support.

If one of the parents is looking to move it is also important to be aware of the child relocation laws in Florida. Schedue a consultation below to find out more about how this will affect your specific situation.

Whether you are just getting divorced and facing a child support case, or when you believe that the child support amount should be changed, your Child Support Lawyer at The Taylor Law Office is ready to help.