Five Facts to Know about Child Support Laws

Are you in the middle of a heated child support disagreement with the co-parent of your children?  Child support can be a sore spot for many people, as they may disagree with the amount of payments they need to give their spouse.  This may even result in failure to pay child support, which can result in legal action against you.  As an attorney that specializes in family law and parenting agreements in Orlando, we understand the ins and outs of child support.  Here are a few facts that you should know about child support payments.

Child Support Payments Vary by Case

Child support payments vary depending on your case, and typically this amount is determined by your income.  This number will be agreed upon by the courts and will take into account a few different factors.  The courts will consider the income of the parents, the child's cost of living, and each parent's employment status.  The location of the child's living situation will also be taken into account.

Failed Payments Can Have Legal Ramifications

Failure to pay your child support payments will result in many different repercussions.  When your co-parent reports your failed payments to their attorney, they will then seek legal action to get you to settle your payments.  They may take your license or even withhold any tax returns.  The judge may even revoke your visitation rights, which can legally prohibit you from spending time with your child until payments are made.  It is not possible, however, for your co-parent to remove this right without intervention of the courts.

Some Situations Involve Payments from Both Parents

If you have joint custody of your children, which may mean that both parents will be responsible for child support payments.  This will depend on the financial situations for both of you.  For example, those that earn less than $10,000 will only need to pay the smallest percentage of child support payments possible.  As their income increases, so do the payments for their children.  

Your Employment Status Matters

Because the courts take your employment status into account when they calculate your child support payments, you will likely not have to pay child support when you are unemployed.  If you lose your job, however, you will still need to make payments until you alert the courts.  They will then make adjustments to the child support arrangement to reflect these new changes.

Talk to Your Ex before Involving Courts

The first thing you should do is talk to your ex.  Perhaps there is a simple explanation of why there are missed payments.  However, if your ex fails to respond, you will want to alert your family law attorney.  They will then begin the process of alerting the courts and seeking legal action to get you the payments you need to care for your child.  

These are some facts that will help you better understand child support and the role it will have in your life as a co-parent that is financially responsible for these payments.  If you are looking for a quality attorney to help you with child support and parenting agreements in Orlando, contact our experienced attorneys today.