Santa Ana Child Support Lawyer

Santa Ana Child Support Attorneys

If you are facing a divorce or legal separation in California and there are minor children involved, one of the big topics you, as well as your soon-to-be ex-spouse, will need to come to an agreement on is child support. At Minyard Morris, our team of Santa Ana child support lawyers are experienced in working to assist parents in determining the amount of financial support needed to raise children and are prepared to advocate for your side of the story.

At Minyard Morris, our family lawyers understand the difficult time you are facing and have a firm knowledge of California’s child support laws and how they might impact your unique situation. Parents have an obligation to support their children in a way that suits their children’s needs, and regardless of whether you are looking to gain this support, modify a child support order that already exists, or defend against child support obligations, we are ready to assist you.

Trust the team at Minyard Morris to protect your rights and offer fierce representation for you, no matter what issue of California child support you might be facing.

How Is Child Support Determined in Santa Ana, California?

The family courts of Santa Ana, California follow strict guidelines when assigning child support amounts to divorced or legally separated parents. However, there are certain circumstances that may allow the courts to stray from these guidelines, as in cases when the child involved has special needs or one of the parents has special circumstances that might call for a different support arrangement.

In most situations, however, the courts will calculate a fair amount of child support to be awarded to the custodial parent based on the following factors:

The income of both parents.
The amount of time the child in question spends at each of their parent’s homes.
The tax filing status of the parents individually.
The number of children involved in the child support situation.
The health insurance premiums paid by the individual parent.
If there are any existing, court-ordered child support payments being made for the benefit of children from other relationships.

In addition to the basic amount of support the custodial parent may be entitled to, there are certain add-ons that may be required in special child support calculations. These are made for the benefit of the children and are typically shared by the parents in an equal manner until otherwise ordered by the courts. These add-ons can include:

Any child care costs that may be necessary due to employment, education, or training for employable skills.
Any reasonable and uninsured health care expenses related to the children.

When the issue of child support causes conflict between the parents, a judge may issue a temporary child support order so that the custodial parent can begin receiving the necessary financial support to raise the children. Should the parents work out their differences and resume living together, this order can run its course.

However, this is rarely the case, and instead, the judge may order an expedited order while the case is being reviewed and a necessary hearing is still pending. Whatever your child support case may entail, Minyard Morris understands that these are difficult times, and your rights deserve to be protected. We can work with you to review your case and advocate for your side of the situation with both aggression and compassion.

Minyard Morris: Assisting You Through Child Support Cases

California follows extremely specific guidelines when it comes to child support, and understanding these guidelines can be confusing. This is why it is so vital that you have an attorney on your side who has a firm knowledge regarding these legal situations. At Minyard Morris (formed over 48 years ago), our team of 20 family lawyers has over 350 years of collective experience between them and is prepared to put that experience to use in protecting your parental rights.

Whether your child support case exists by itself or is part of a larger family law proceeding such as a divorce or modification case, the team at Minyard Morris can assist you in the following ways:

Educating you on your parental rights and as a receiver or payor of child support.
Identifying any potential exemptions or add-ons for child care or the special needs of you or your child.
Ensuring you understand how and when child support enforcement works, as well as when modifications may be available.
Making assessments of your current child support orders and seeing if there is any room for potential modification or further clarity.
Negotiating a fair child support agreement.
Litigating your position on child support in court.

FAQs

Q: What Are Common Reasons to Seek Child Support Modification?

A: After a final court order is made regarding child support, opportunities may still arise for you to seek modification to this order. However, these modifications can only be pursued under certain circumstances. These circumstances include job loss, illness, injury, or illness that either affects your ability to pay as the payor or causes you to become in need of more support as the receiver.

Q: What Happens if I Don’t Pay Child Support?

A: If you are ordered by the courts to pay child support and you do not obey said order, this can lead to costly financial and legal issues. Your tax returns or paychecks could become garnished or intercepted in order for the support to be paid, and the courts may find you in contempt of court, which could potentially result in jail time.

Q: Can Visitation Rights Be Withheld if Child Support Is Missed?

A: In California, some parents may be tempted to withhold visitation rights from the non-custodial parent if that parent is not paying necessary child support. However, this is actually seen as acting in contempt of court, similar to how the paying parent is in contempt of court when not paying child support. It is better to seek the assistance of an attorney in these situations.

Q: How Much Can a Child Support Lawyer Charge?

A: It is hard to offer a definite amount when it comes to how much a child support lawyer will charge because there are several factors that will impact the final fees of an attorney, including the complications and length of your child support fight and the experience of your attorney.

Speak to an Aggressive Family Advocate Today

If you are facing a divorce, legal separation, or court-order modification, and the topic of child support is a factor, the team at Minyard Morris is here to advocate for your rights. You deserve fair treatment, no matter your position as the payment receiver or grantor, and we are ready to help ensure you get it. Contact our offices today to learn more.

Santa Ana Child Support Lawyer FAQ

What Other Issues Does a Court Look to in Determining Income Available for the Payment of Child Support?

A family law court may look to the parents income and assets in determining the amount of child support.

Structured annuity payments paid relative to a personal injury do not constitute income for the purposes of determining child support.

Spousal support is not income to be included in the calculation of guideline child support. (IRMO Corman).

A wealthy party may avoid extensive discovery if a stipulation is reached providing that the party has the ability to pay any reasonable child support. (Estevez v. Superior Court and IRMO Aylesworth).

When there is a dispute as to the income of a party, the divorce court may look to a party’s loan application as presumptive evidence of income. (IRMO Calcaterra & Badakhsh). The representations on the loan application can be received by the divorce court as admissions of the income earned.

A party may not reduce his or her income by voluntarily making payments to reduce debt that is not currently due to a third person or entity. For example, a party prepaying a mortgage cannot claim a reduction in income. (IRMO Kirk).

Voluntarily deferring income is not a proper basis for a reduction of spousal or child support. (IRMO Berger).

Proceeds from the sale of a business that are reinvested are not income available for child support. (IRMO Pearlstein).

The increase in the amount of equity in a home is not income for purposes of calculating child support. (IRMO Henry).

What Sources of Revenue are Included in the Guideline Child Support Calculation?

Child support is based upon the gross (not net) income of the parties, including the following types of income and benefits:

Salary;
Bonuses;
Royalties;
Rents;
Workers compensation;
Unemployment benefits;
Disability benefits;
Social Security benefits;
Employment benefits;
Deferred income;
Perquisites;
Military allowances;
Meal allowances;
Recurring Gifts;
Most annuity payments; and
Vested stock options/RSUs/Profits Interests.

The following items are not income available for child support:

One time inheritances;
Unallocated lump-sum personal injury recoveries;
Loans of all types including student loans;
Life Insurance proceeds; and
Proceeds of the sale of stock in a business that are reinvested.

When Does Child Support End?

Child support is payable until a child completes high school, but not after a child attains the age of 19.

Child support does not automatically end on the death of the payor parent, even if the primary parent had child custody. (IRMO McCann).

Child support may be payable to adult children who are unable to support themselves.

What is Guideline Child Support?

Guideline child support is calculated with the use of a computer program that requires the input of a number of factors. The most significant of which are custodial time-share and income (as defined by the Family Code).The purpose of child support is to provide a level of support that allows the child to share the parent’s economic station in life.

California family law states that parents must contribute to the support of a child, according to a detailed formula utilized in the software programs “X-Spouse” and “Dissomaster.” These programs generate “guideline” child support.

Child support is more involved than simply inputting the incomes of the parties into a computer program and pressing enter. The computer program generates the guideline child support amount. A family court may order a party to pay for additional expenses, referred to as “add-ons,” in addition to the base child support. Add-ons may include such things as child care, activity costs, schools costs, travel costs, health insurance premiums, and medical costs not paid by insurance. Other issues that may need to be addressed include imputation of income, determining the representative period of past earnings to determine the most probable future income, how to treat fluctuating income, determining whether money received is income, etc.

A family court may order “add-on” costs be paid in full by one party, or divided between the parties in equal or unequal shares.

A family court may order a base level of child support, and a supplemental payment of any additional income received over the base salary. This supplemental child payment is referred to as an “Ostler-Smith” payment.

Child Support Decision Tree

Family Law Interconnectivity Overview – Children

Is the Court Required to Order the Computer Generated Child Support Amount?

A family law court may depart or deviate from guideline child support, even though the amount of guideline child support is presumed to be the correct amount. A family law court has the discretion to determine whether or not to depart from guideline child support but must make specific findings to justify the departure (IRMO Hall).

The following circumstances may justify departure from guideline child support:

Special needs of a child (IRMO Cryer);
Exceptionally high earner;
Deferred home award to payee party;
A party is not contributing to the needs of the children at a level commensurate with their time share;
Unjustness of the guideline formula in the particular circumstance;
Payment of significant amount of community consumer debt incurred for basic living needs (County of Lake v. Antoni); and
Mortgage free housing. (IRMO Schlafly).

A client should expect their divorce lawyer to be beyond candid, and explain to them the strengths and weaknesses of the case, and the probable outcome of litigation at the first attorney-client meeting and at every stage during the process, as new facts unfold. A client should have the opportunity to make informed and timely decisions about their children. Our Orange County divorce lawyers are known for telling our clients the good, the bad, and the ugly about child custody matters – early and often. Clients deserve to hear the truth, not a sales pitch.

Is There a Difference in the Determination of Guideline Child Support at the Temporary Stage vs. the Post-Judgment Stage?

Temporary child support is ordered at the Request For Order (RFO) stage of the case. Post-judgment child support, is ordered at the trial. Guideline child support ordered at both stages of a case, is determined by the same formula.

Potential Sequence of Steps and Procedural Events in a Divorce

Isn’t Child Support Determined by Simply Using a Computer Program?

Child support is a complex area of family law and is more involved than simply inputting the incomes of the parties into a computer program and pressing enter. The computer program generates the guideline child support amount. A family court may order a party to pay for additional expenses referred to as “add-ons” in addition to the base child support. Add-ons may include such things as child care, activity costs, schools costs, travel costs, health insurance premiums and medical costs not paid by insurance. Other issues that may need to be addressed include issues like imputation of income, determining the representative period of past earnings to determine the most probable future income, how to treat fluctuating income, determining whether money received is income, etc.

A family court may order “add-on” costs be paid in full by one party or divided between the parties in equal or unequal shares.

A family court may order a base level of child support and a supplemental payment of any additional income received over the base salary. This supplemental child payment is referred to as and “Ostler-Smith” payment.

“Child Support Decision Tree

Family Law Interconnectivity Overview – Children

Is the Amount of Custodial Time That Each Parent Has Relevant to the Amount of Child Support?

Conflicts may exist relative to the methodology of calculating custodial time sharing. Generally, hours of parental responsibility are counted towards the time share percentages. This means that when a child sleeps at one parent’s home, that parent is credited with the sleep hours in the time share calculation. Likewise, if one parent is responsible for issues that arise during the school day, that parent is credited with the school hours. One of the significant factors that determines guideline child support is the child custody time share percentages. A higher child custody time share for the payor decreases child support, and a lower child custody time share for the payor increases child support.

“Child Support

Is Child Support Modifiable?

Child support is always modifiable. However, it may only be modified retroactively to the date of the filing of a Request For Order (RFO) seeking the modification.

Child support is modifiable if there has been a material change in circumstances since the date of the last order. A change in income or a change in the child custody timeshare may be a material change in circumstances. However, a substantial reduction in income from employment may not justify a reduction in child support, if the payor has substantial income from investments.

The parties may not bind the family law court to a specific standard of review to modify a child support order. (IRMO Cohen).

Common examples of circumstances that may warrant a modification of child support include: a change in income of either party, decrease in the income of either party or change in custodial time share.

Time Share Factor

Income Factor

How Does the Family Law Court Address Health Insurance Issues?

A divorce court must order one or both parties to maintain health insurance for the children, if available through employment at no or nominal cost.

A divorce court will generally order each party to pay all, or a portion, of a child’s medical expenses not paid by insurance. The court can order the parties to pay disproportionate shares of health costs.

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