How is Child Support Determined and Ordered in Los Angeles, Orange County and other So Cal Family Courts?
In California, child support is determined using a mathematical formula codified in Family Code Section 4055. The most important factors are the respective incomes of the parents, and the amount of time the parents have the children in their physical custody.
Guideline Support
In California, the “guideline support amount” is the child support amount determined by a statewide formula and calculation that courts are generally required to use. This formula takes into account both parents’ incomes, the number of children, and the parenting schedule (how much time each parent spends with the children), plus costs for health insurance and childcare. The goal is to provide a consistent and fair amount of support to ensure the child’s financial needs are met.
Deviation from Guideline Support
California Family Code § 4057(b)(5): Allows for a deviation from the guideline when applying it would be unjust or inappropriate, such as when one parent has significantly higher income. The parents can aslo obtain a Child Support Order deviating from Guideline Support if the parents stipulate to the order and meet the requirements of Family Code § 4057(b)(1) and set forth facts showing the financial needs of the children will be met.
Child Support Add Ons: What Are Add Ons and How Are they Apportioned?
The court may add on to the child support order some expenses of the children such childcare while a parent works, out of pocket medical expenses, medical insurance for the child and extracurricular activities, and divide those additional expenses between the parents using the parenting schedule and the parents’ respective incomes to arrive at a fair division of the add ons. Add-on expenses are not always divided evenly.
Under California Family Code §§ 4061-4062, courts have authority to order an unequal division of child support add-ons (childcare, uninsured healthcare, educational expenses) by departing from the default 50/50 split. This is authorized when the guideline formula is unjust or inappropriate due to significant income disparities or specific, unique, or high-cost expenses that, if split equally, would not be in the child’s best interest,
Guideline Child support calculations are commonly undertaken by the Family Law Judges and Attorneysusing a computer program. The program used in Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura Superior Courts is Xspouse. If you would like to estimate child support payments, you can use the following information and calculator: https://childsupport.ca.gov/calculate-child-support/
Child Support Can Be Requested and Later the Amounts Can Be Modified
Child support can be requested and later a parent can ask that the support be modified– reduced or increased– by making a written request to the Court. This is called a Request for Orders and is made using the FL-300 Request for Orders form. This is the same form one uses to modify an initial child support order. The party must also prepare the FL-150 Income and Expense Declaration form which explains the financial circumstances of the parent. The request for orders and income and expense declaration must be served on the other parent and filed with the court. Use the Proof of Service form to show the court you served the other parent with the request for orders and income and expense declaration.
The court will have a hearing on the issue of child support and issue an order. Later, if the facts support it and you make a formal motion (A Request for Orders) to the court for a modification, you can have support increased or reduced. For example, if the parent receiving the child support inherits money, gets a large raise, or otherwise has an increased ability to support the children, support payments may be reduced for the paying parent. In contrast, if the paying parent loses his or her job, the court can be asked to reduce support during the period of unemployment or lower income.
Child support orders cannot be changed simply because one parent desires a change. A change in the support amount will be based on evidence proving that sufficient grounds exist to make the change. This requires a showing the circumstances have changed from what they were when the order was entered. In the many years a child support order remains effective, the parents’ circumstances may change many times and so may the child support order.
For law nerds, here is the law on changes of child support: Family Code Section 3651 governs the modification or termination of support orders, including child support. (§ 3651, subd. (e). As a general rule, courts will not modify child or spousal support unless there has been a material change of circumstances following the previous determination.” There are no rigid guidelines for judging whether circumstances have sufficiently changed to warrant a child support modification. So long as the statewide statutory formula support requirements are met (Fam. [Code,] § 4050 et seq.), the determination is made on a case-by-case basis and may properly rest on fluctuations in need or ability to pay.
And here’s the law for the determination of child support: The Family Code sets forth California’s uniform child support guideline. Family Code Section 4055 sets forth a mathematical formula to calculate child support that each trial court must implement. The support amount rendered under the guideline’s algebraic formula is intended to be presumptively correct in all cases, and only under special circumstances should child support orders fall below the child support mandated by the guideline formula.
What Happens If a Parent Owes Past Due Child Support?
Learn how the Court addresses past due child support here.
Top Rated Woodland Hills Child Support Attorney Galen Gentry assists clients in Los Angeles and Southern California with issues relating child support. Mr. Gentry has 30 years of experience and can help people protect their families and their interests.
Call us to schedule a free strategy session with Mr. Gentry or contact us here.