Child support matters may spark confusion in New York

On Behalf of | Jun 6, 2019 | Child Custody, Firm News |

Going through divorce can understandably be difficult for the entire family, especially from a financial standpoint. A financial aspect of divorce that can be particularly hard for parents to deal with is child support. Let us take a peek at how the family law court addresses child support matters in New York.

As a general rule of thumb, minor children depend on their parents for financial support. This is why both custodial parents and non-custodial parents are required to meet their children’s financial needs after divorce. These needs range from food to housing, clothing, health care, transportation and entertainment.

The non-custodial parent — the parent who does not live with the children — is responsible for covering these needs by making child support payments to the other party. The court looks at several factors when deciding how much child support the paying spouse should provide. For instance, a judge generally looks at the children’s needs, the income of the non-custodial parent and how many children he or she must support. A judge also takes into consideration how much the custodial parent needs to live as well as what the children’s living standard was before the marital breakup. The support order may be altered down the road if a major change happens to the non-custodial parent, such as a job loss.

Child support remains a major area of contention among divorcing couples because it features both financial and emotional components. The non-custodial parent might be worried about paying too much support, whereas the custodial parent might worry about not receiving enough of it, for example. However, an attorney can help divorcing parents to pursue a fair and personally favorable child support outcome in New York.

Archives

FindLaw Network