Long Island Child Support Lawyer
Parents, whether married, separated, divorcing or already single, often have to deal with conflicting child support issues. Making sure your child has financial support is extremely important. It is essential to have a New York based child support attorney that will compassionately advocate for the enforcement and collection of child support on behalf of the child and the parent. Part of the child support process is protecting your child support rights by correctly calculating payments based on the non-custodial parent's income. Based on our experience, we can carefully navigate through the laws and outline the best options governing your child support needs. The experienced Long Island child support lawyers of The Kepanis Law Firm will ensure that all child support payments are accurately calculated and enforced. Contact The Kepanis Law Firm serving parents throughout Nassau and Suffolk County for a free consultation and direction regarding your child support obligations.
Our family lawyers represent clients in child support matters from the most basic to the most complex. Our objective is to help divorcing parents come to an agreement regarding child support. We handle child support enforcement actions, contempt actions, and negotiate and litigate on behalf of parties seeking back support judgments (arrears), as well as those defending against such actions. Mandated by New York State statute, child support must be included in any divorce settlement. Essentially child support is based on income and expenses, as well as a formula that takes child custody into account. While a child's well being cannot be reduced merely to the amount of financial support he or she receives, supporting a child at a level that is equitable to all of the parties is important to a child's growth and development.
New York Child Support Guidelines
Child support is calculated according to a formula contained in New York State law. While the court is willing to consider extenuating circumstances that affect a parent's ability to pay child support, the formula used provides a valid estimate of what you will be expected to pay. In situations where the non-custodial paying spouse earns in excess of $80,000 a year gross income, a judge has the discretion to decide the amount of necessary child support payments.
If a non-custodial parent is paying child support for children from different marriages or spouses, the court may subtract that amount and use the remaining amount as base income before applying the child support formula.
Modifying Child Support Payments
Modification of child support may be appropriate in those situations where illness or loss of employment creates the need to increase the child support received or decrease the amount paid. It is important to note that an informal verbal agreement between your ex-spouse or parent of your child and you will not be enforceable and may lead to future legal complications. Our firm will assist with the preparation of all the necessary documentation for you to petition the court to obtain a child support payment modification.
Enforcement
If you are a custodial parent and have not received child support as ordered from your child's other parent, you should consult an attorney and begin collection process through court enforcement, if necessary.
Our office, located in Uniondale, New York is dedicated to the family law needs of those people throughout Nassau and Suffolk Counties. An experienced, well-established family law attorney can be a tremendous asset to parents navigating the child support process. Consult The Kepanis Law Firm about child support, modification, enforcement or any other family law issue. Contact us today.