Child support is money one parent pays the other for the care, support, education, and raising of their children when the parents are not living together. The custodial parent (the parent having physical custody of the child) is usually paid child support by the non-custodial parent.It's important to note that any new child support order, or any modification in child support, is generally going to be by wage assignment. The exceptions are in cases involving modification of support orders where the judge finds there is "good cause" not to require a wage assignment and the judge further enters a written finding of fact in the order of the court that the non-custodial parent has made timely payment of previously ordered support. In finding "good cause" the court is further required to find that an immediate income assignment would not be in the best interests of the child, and must state specifically why such assignment would not be in the child's best interests. The other meaningful exception is if there is a written agreement by both parties providing for alternative arrangements; under those circumstances the judge is required to review the agreement and enter it into the court record. (Click here to read TCA 36-5-501, the statute involved, or you can find the general child support enforcement guideline regulations issued by the state of Tennessee at the Tennessee Department of Human Services website search link, or if the state has not changed the link lately you can find the language of the regulations themselves at http://www.state.tn.us/sos/rules/1240/1240-02/1240-02-04.pdf , though you have to use the Acrobat Reader program to view the file at that link. You can also get forms for establishing and setting child support orders from the state through the same website, which presently is at http://www.state.tn.us/sos/rules/1240/1240-02/1240-02-01.pdf and again requires use of Acrobat Reader. In case you don't have Acrobat Reader on you computer, you can download it for free at the Adobe website.)
How is child support determined?How is child support determined? How do you change child support? Does child support get deducted from the payer's paycheck? How? When will a court deviate from the guidelines? What if the custodial parent isn't spending the money on the child? What about child support due when the non-custodial parent is disabled? When does child support end? How do you stop it?
In Tennessee child support is set according to guidelines the state puts out every couple of years or so. Those guidelines require the court to look to the potential net income of the non-custodial parent and the income of the custodial parent is not really a factor. In other words, even if the custodial parent has absolutely no need whatsoever for any financial help in taking care of the children, and even if the non-custodial parent has tremendous financial obligations, it makes no difference and child support will still be set based on a percentage of the non-custodial parent's potential net income.
For one child, the standard percentage is 21%; for two, 32%; for three, 41%; for four, 46%; and for five or more (even if a dozen) it's 50%.
Net income is defined as gross income less a deduction for federal tax and social security payments. Prior court-ordered support for any other children will also be deducted in determining the net income subject to child support. But children born after a child support order is set, even if there is a court order of support for the other children, will not reduce child support for any prior child. Children being supported without a court order will make no difference whatsoever in setting child support -- such voluntary child support payments are considered gifts to the non-custodial parent.
Because of the way net income is defined, it includes all income, even if from winning the lottery. It is also based on potential income, meaning even if the actual income drops as a result of the non-custodial quitting a job or changing jobs or refusing overtime... the child support is to be set based on what the non-custodial could be earning.
The court is also allowed to order the non-custodial parent to provide life insurance naming the child as beneficiary, and to carry medical insurance on the child. These requirements are generally in addition to the base child support payments.How do you change child support?
It only changes if there is a court order to change it. If both parents agree to a change, sign an Agreed Order, present it to the judge handling the case, and the judge believes there is no effort to reduce support below the guidelines to give the non-custodial parent a break, most judges will routinely sign the Agreed Order changing support payments.
If there is no agreement, the parent seeking the change must file a Petition to Modify, and must sign an oath as part ot the Petition that all of the allegations are true and correct. The Petition must also set out what the state refers to as "a substantial and material change in circumstances.", and if sought based on a change in the non-custodial parent's income the change must be at least 15% (up or down the same 15% is required).Does child support get deducted from the payer's paycheck? How?
It's not automatically deducted in every case, but it is deducted if ordered by the court, and such orders are routinely granted if the custodial parent requests it. The paycheck deduction is then sent to the clerk of the court (along with an added five percent surcharge going to the clerk's office as a "handling fee"), with the clerk then sending payment to the custodial parent.When will a court deviate from the guidelines?
The court is allowed to deviate from the guidelines, either upward or downward, on good cause, which the judge must be set out in writing explaining the deviation. Note that while support is seldom set below the guideline percentages, if a child is disabled or has special medical needs, the court may well set child support above the guideline percentages. The one major exception is that if the non-custodial parent has a net income of more than $6,000 a month, the court is then allowed to deviate downward and to hold the child support at what it would be if the net income were just $6,000 a month, or to set it at some level between what the guidelines would put it for $6,000 a month and what the guidelines would put it at if mechanically applied to the actual, higher net monthly income.What if the custodial parent isn't spending the money on the child?
There's little to nothing a parent paying child support can do when the money is not being used for the child. There is absolutely no requirement that the parent with custody provide any accounting of how the money is spent, and I don't know of any judge who would even consider requiring it.
Even if you can show that the custodial parent is banking the money and that the cost of caring for the child is far less than the child support (or at least that the custodial parent is spending less than that on the child), or that the custodial is spending the money on a boyfriend or girlfriend... it makes no difference and will not let you get the support figure reduced.
The best thing you can do is to keep good records to help you later show that the custodial parent is doing a bad job with the child, does not care about the child, and that the child would be better off with you. This would likely persuade a court to change custody... but not to reduce your child support payments so long as the other parent has custody.What about child support due when the non-custodial parent is disabled?
It often happens that that the non-custodial parent will lose a job or become seriously injured and unable to work, and the non-custodial parent will assume that they certainly couldn't be expected to pay child support under those circumstances and will assume that they aren't required to pay support until they're working again.
WRONG.
This is a mistake that gets lots of non-custodial parents in trouble, and gets some of them sent to jail for contempt for failing to pay child support as ordered. If the non-custodial parent does lose a job for some reason outside of the parent's control (like the company goes out of business versus being fired for coming to work drunk), or is temporarily disabled, judges will routinely reduce child support, and can reduce it back to the date the parent filed the Petition to Modify.
Under no circumstances is the court allowed to reduce or excuse child support retroactively to any date earlier than the date the Petition to Modify is filed.When does child support end?
In most cases, child support obligation stops when the child reaches age eighteen or when the child graduates from high school (if he or she is graduating with his or her class), whichever is later. It also ends if the child dies, marries, or lives on his or her own away from the custodial parent. But this does not happen automatically, and if support is being paid by a wage assignment the wage assignment will continue until the court enters a new order ending support (or reducing it if one child remains with the custodial parent and is not yet 18 years old). It's also not the case if the child is disabled and has special needs -- in these cases the court can order the child support to continue indefinitely.How do you stop it?
If you are paying child support, the only way to stop paying and not have an arrearage accumulate is to go to court; otherwise, the custodian can come back years later and petition for and get a judgment against you for unpaid support payments. Nothing, including unemployment, illness, or agreements with your former spouse will authorize the nonpayment of ordered child support payments.Support for children may cost a great deal over the years. Having an attorney fight for a favorable decision can be a good investment.
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