Florida Child Support Attorneys
Under Florida law, each parent is obligated to support their child financially. Often, the child lives primarily with one parent, who supports the child by providing for his or her needs. The other parent is required to provide financial support to help meet the child’s needs. In other cases, each parent will share a substantial amount of time with the child. Where both parents share time, child support is based on a formula that incorporates the income of each parent, the number of days the child spends with each parent, and certain expenses paid by each parent. At DML Attorneys, we help parents in the Tampa Bay area ensure that the proper amount of child support is awarded.
If you are faced with paying child support, we can also help you with proven strategies to make sure that as much of your support obligation as possible goes directly to benefit your child, not your ex. From determining the true amount of income at issue, to gathering information about your child’s needs, we will advocate for you by presenting an accurate picture of the appropriate amount of child support in your case.
If child support has already been determined in your case, you may seek to modify the amount if circumstances change. We can petition for modifications to increase or decrease child support obligations. A modification may be justified if you lose your job, lose your home, face a salary change, or your child’s needs change. In some cases, a modification may be appropriate where there is a change in expenses such as medical bills or child case.
If you have an issue involving the enforcement of a child support award, we can also assist you. The law imposes potentially severe penalties on those who do no pay their child support. Our experienced attorneys can help protect your rights.
Contact the experienced attorneys at DML Attorneys to ensure your rights are protected.
Paying Child Support in Florida
Child support is an important issue in many family law cases, especially where one parent is voluntarily unemployed, voluntarily underemployed, or is dishonest about their true income.
Every parent in Florida has a legal and moral obligation to provide financially for his or her children.
Child support calculations are governed by the Florida child support guidelines set forth in Section 61.30, Florida Statutes, which sets forth a schedule of pre-determined monthly support obligation based on the net income of the parents, the number of minor children, and certain credits and adjustments for certain childcare expenses (such as daycare and health insurance).
While at first glance, child support may appear to be straightforward, many mistakes are often made by attorneys in preparing financial affidavits, knowing what constitutes "income" and how to calculate income. It is not always as simple as it may seem. Experience counts.
Parental Income
Florida’s child support guidelines take into account all relevant income, including:
Salary or wages
Bonuses, commissions, allowances, overtime, tips, etc.
Business income from self-employment, partnership, closely-held corporations, and independent contracts
Disability benefits
Workers’ compensation benefits and settlements
Unemployment compensation
Pension, retirement, and annuity payments
Social security benefits
Spousal support received from a previous marriage or court ordered in a pending divorce
Interest and dividends
Rental income
Income from royalties, trusts, and estates
Reimbursed expenses or in kind payments to the extent that they reduce living expenses
Gains derived from dealings in property, unless the gain is nonrecurring
Disputes over claims of unemployment, underemployment, and inability to work are typically resolved through the litigation process.
Deviating from Child Support Guidelines
As a general rule, Florida courts cannot deviate more than 5% from the guideline schedule. Depending on the facts of a particular case, however, the statute allows for an upward or downward departure in the discretion of the Court. Circumstances justifying a departure from the guidelines include:
Extraordinary medical, psychological, educational, or dental expenses.
Independent income of the child, not including SSI.
Support for a spouse’s parent that has been regularly paid and for which there is a demonstrated need.
Seasonal variations in incomes or expenses.
The age of the child, taking into account the greater needs of older children.
Special needs, such as costs that may be associated with the disability of a child.
The impact of the Internal Revenue Service Child & Dependent Care Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, and dependency exemption.
The particular parenting plan, such as where the child spends a significant amount of time, but less than 20 percent of the overnights, with one parent, thereby reducing the financial expenditures incurred by the other parent; or the refusal of a parent to become involved in the activities of the child.
Any other adjustment that is needed to achieve an equitable result which may include, but not be limited to, payment of a reasonable and necessary existing expense or debt.
What We've Achieved
Imputed income to non-working spouses.
Imputed income for child support purposes to dishonorably discharged military service member.
Modified custody and child support for military servicemember in the special forces who left active duty to spend more time as a father.
Brought and defended claims for retroactive child support based on a parent's failure to exercise time-sharing.
Petitioned for rehearing where the court improperly calculated child support.
Petitioned to set aside improper child support award.
Petitioned to set aside marital settlement agreement where father agreed under duress to overpay child support.
Moved to set aside final judgment where mother misrepresented her income to avoid paying child support to father.
If you have a legal issue involving child support, either receiving it or paying it, our Tampa family law attorneys can find a strategy to effectively advocate for you in Court.