As a Florida family law attorney, I know how confusing and stressful the child support process can seem to someone not familiar with the legal process. I see it in my clients’ faces all the time. Here’s the truth, though—while the process can be complicated in some cases, how the Florida courts determine child support amounts is not a mystery.
Here’s a video breakdown of the basics.
Now that you understand the basic rules that govern the process, let’s take a closer look together at some of the criteria that the courts use to determine child support amounts.
Child Support Guidelines in Florida
As I mention in the video above and in a previous blog post, the Florida courts use guidelines to set child support amounts. You can view the guidelines in the Florida Statutes here. As you can see, these guidelines are thorough (if not a bit confusing for the average person), so allow me to highlight some important points.
At the start of the process, both parents must fill out financial affidavits and file them with the court. These affidavits detail both parties’ incomes and expenses. After the courts determine the net income of both parents, these amounts are then added together. Using the table included in the Florida Statutes linked to above, the judge then assigns a percentage of the total child support obligation to each parent.
Let’s look at an example.
Let’s say you and your child’s other parent make a net total of $7000 per month—$2500 from you and $4500 from the other parent. Assuming that the other parent is the non-custodial parent and only has visitations with the child amounting to fewer than 73 overnights per year (less than 20% of the overnight stays), then you would be responsible for about 35% of the basic monthly child support while the other parent would be responsible for 65%. Referring to the table in the Florida Statutes above, you can see that the basic monthly child support that corresponds to a combined net income of $7000 is $1212. (This is the amount for one child. Parents who have more than one child will refer to the corresponding columns in the table.) Therefore, the other parent would have to pay you about $788 per month.
Parents who share custody more equally than the above example would have to make a different calculation to determine child support. A Florida family law attorney can help with this.
Requesting a Deviation or Modification
Some cases require different criteria to determine child support amounts. For example, one parent may request an amount that doesn’t follow the table if they have a good reason. This is known as a deviation. Parents requesting the deviation must provide evidence that their situation requires renewed consideration.
Parents can also request that their child support amount be modified. To be eligible for a modification, the parent making the request must show that their situation has substantially changed since the original child support order.
Discuss Your Child Support Case with a Florida Family Law Attorney
Still not sure how your child support case will unfold? Get in touch with me today so that we can discuss your situation and determine the best course of action.
About the Author: Helena Y. Farber is an attorney in Aventura, Florida, whose practice is concentrated in the areas of divorce and family law. She can be reached at (305) 520-9205 or via email at hyf@farberlawpa.com.
Disclaimer: The attorney makes this Blog available for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this blog site, you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Blog. The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.