A divorce does not free you of your liabilities and legal responsibilities towards your partner or your children. Even with a divorce and not having custody, you can be held responsible for supporting the educational, physical, emotional and psychological needs of your children. The level of support you must provide is often determined in terms of child support payments that an Illinois court decides during divorce proceedings. Child support is a vast and complex area of law, and it is essential that you know it well to ensure that your interests are protected well in court.
What is Child Support?
It is the monetary payment that supports the need of a child after the divorce. If you live in Illinois, then the following legal guidelines apply to your case. Child support is calculated according to both parent’s current income and the parenting time that they are providing. The payment is decided by the court, and depends fully on the two factors that we have described here for monetary calculations.
The Payment Calculation
The payment calculation has recently changed in Illinois and the fixed percentages for child support payment no longer apply. The authorities are now more concerned with the quality of parenting time that the kids can receive from the divorcing parents. The payments now also depend on whether you are a custodial parent or not. A custodial parent is the one, who spends at least 146 nights with the kids in their custody.
The new law in Illinois uses the shared income support principle and then gives weightage to the parenting time of both the custodial and non-custodial parents. If both parents are spending the required time with their kids, child support is calculated according to their share of the total income that they are generating.
The Net Income
This is the total income that a parent is earning each month. The judge usually includes several income avenues before finalizing on the net income. It includes the normal salary, any commissions, dividends and capital gains. Additionally, any royalty, retirement income or compensation benefits that a person receives can be included in the sum that describes the overall income.
However, there are some avenues that are not included in the net salary. This calculation does not include social security contributions, the health insurance payments, and other obligations that you must pay with your income.
Legal Liability
Once a child support order is entered in the court, you become legally liable for paying it consistently, throughout a considerable period. This means that you must be vigilant and retain the help of an experienced family lawyer to ensure that you are not dealt a strong hand, which does not take your particular situation into consideration at the time of the judicial hearing.
Remember, it is difficult to reduce the payments once the court has finalized the numbers. Once the court order is issued, you will need to show that you are complying with the court order or the court can open legal proceedings against you. Contact Casement P.C., to schedule a free consultation today and ensure that you deal with child support payments the right way in Illinois.