Maintenance of a Child: Basic Concepts

When a couple with children separates or divorces, or when is a single dad and have custody of the children, the court may order the non-custodial parent (the parent who does not live with the child) is to provide a certain amount of his wages for the sustenance of the children. This is not the only situation in which it may be necessary to the sustenance of the children. Less frequently, when neither parent has custody, the court may order both to pay the child support to a third party to take care of your child.

No matter what situation encourage the payment of maintenance, it helps to think that it is the child who has the legal right to be maintained (which is technically true) so that it can be brought up in an appropriate manner, regardless of who receives the payments from that sustenance.

The role of the government in the sustenance of children

In the united States almost half of all marriages end in divorce and almost one-quarter of children born to unmarried parents, so the rules about child support are a social issue very important. Although before we left the arrangements in the hands of the parents, now the agencies that exercise the rules on the livelihood of children have a more dynamic role in demanding the payments from non-custodial parents.

Frequently, the agency and the court work together to implement an order that would ensure the sustenance and in virtue of which it subtract automatically a sum of the salary of who should pay for it. If you don’t meet the support payments, the agency can implement other collection mechanisms, such as retention of income tax refunds, or seizing real estate or other personal property.

Orders of child support

The family court issues orders of support and based on the amount that must be provided in the state standards of support for children. These regulations set out the amount to pay according to the income of the noncustodial parent and the number of children. The court also takes into account other relevant factors, such as the income of the custodial parent and the needs of the children.

The court may deviate from the rules if there are good reasons to do so. That the custodial parent has high income does not justify deviation from the standards, because before the law, children have the right to benefit from the income of both parents. The amount for the support can be increased if a change in circumstances justifies it, such as an increase in the income of the one who pays or the costs of housing, a reduction in the income of the custodial parent, or an increase in the needs of the child. Similarly, the amount may be reduced if circumstances warrant.

Single parents and livelihoods of children

In the cases of single mothers who want to get the child support, the first step is to legally establish the “paternity” of the parent of the child. The father can do this voluntarily, but if it were not so, the mother can bring a lawsuit to establish paternity, which is usually done through a DNA test. The court will order the alleged father to submit to the test if he does not decide to do so voluntarily. Once paternity is established, the court will issue an order of child support in a manner similar to that of divorce.

Child support when parents move to another state

When the parent without custody to move to another state, the custodial parent may have with the Uniform Act Enforcement Reciprocal Support (Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act to implement or ensure payment of child support. This law provides the mechanisms under which a child support order that is issued in one state may be enforced by the courts of another state.

A Child support: How to obtain the help of an attorney

If you are facing a dispute the potential for the sustenance of children, whether due to a divorce or because he is a single dad, a lawyer specializing in family law can help you with a fair representation of the parties in the process. A lawyer specializing in family law will work to obtain the best possible result in the execution of the support order, in the fulfillment of an order already existing, or in the establishment (or rejection) of the paternity. The first step is to find a lawyer spatialized in family law in your area.