If you’re battling divorce and have children below 18, your children can be entitled to child support. Child support is typically money sent from one parent to the child financially after the marriage ends. However, in specific parenting agreements, child support could be calculated using a system that requires one parent to pay the other.
It’s not possible to disqualify yourself from paying child support, as courts have ruled that it’s a child’s right. An attorney for family law can assist you if you have specific parenting arrangements or require assistance in calculating and enforcing child support.
How a Child Support Attorney Can Assist You
Family law is a particular area of law that requires empathy and has a substantial emotional influence on the legal process. In a domestic violence Baton Rouge case, a child’s welfare falls under the child custody section. This is why a child support lawyer is responsible for guiding clients through critical moments in their lives. Here are the pros of having a child support lawyer by your side.
1. Calculate child support
The value of child support owed is calculated by considering both parties’ earnings and parental arrangements, formerly known as child custody. Child custody lawyers typically rely on pay stubs and income tax returns to calculate one’s annual income.
However, calculating income becomes much more complicated when a person is self-employed or works for a company. This is why it is essential to consult with a lawyer to ensure that the right amounts of child care are determined to meet the children’s financial needs.
2. Ensure That Agreements Are Legally Binding
For instance, if you and your husband are friends, you may agree on child custody, decision-making responsibilities, or child support. In this instance, you might draft a separation contract.
However, each person must get separate legal assistance when executing a separation agreement. As a result, it’s a good idea to employ a child custody attorney to analyze the separation contract before signing it to ensure it’s legally valid.
3. Enforcement in the Event of Non-payment by the Party
If one parent refuses to provide support, you have some options for enforcing the obligation. To begin, get your child support agreements legally enforceable with a court-issued order. An attorney for child custody can assist you in preparing an order and have it submitted to the court. If the parent who is not paying child support continues to disregard their child support duties after the order is approved and filed, it is deemed to be violating the court’s ruling.
A Baton Rouge juvenile crime lawyer shall be in charge of the case if the child is charged with a crime. In this event, the welfare of the child is still protected and shall also be entitled to support from their parents if the court sees it to be necessary.
4. Guide Step-parents
It is possible that you will be legally obliged for child maintenance if an involved step-parent takes on the part of a parent for the child. In “loco parentis,” Latin for “in the place of a parent,” the courts refer to step-parents and other relatives acting as the children’s guardians. It’s a fact that biological parents are obligated to provide child support.
However, step-parents may be liable in the same way as parents by the law. A child support attorney Baton Rouge can aid you if contemplating divorce and wish to find out if you’re considered in the loco parentis.
5. Differentiate Parenting Time and Child Custody
The divorce law has changed significantly concerning parental issues. Notably, parenting time is now termed child custody. Child support is calculated according to the child’s length of time spent in the parent’s care.
Child support can be a discretionary matter if the parties have equal custody. When there is shared parenting, parties often settle using the set-off approach.
