How to Know if Child Support in Your Divorce Is Not Fair and Equitable

 Posted on February 01, 2021 in Family Law

Family law can be quite complicated, especially when you are facing a divorce and you have children. In fact, when dealing with a divorce in your family, one of the more consequential and important parts of the divorce process is the determination of child support. Based on the child’s custody type, either sole or shared, as well as a state-dictated percentage of one or both parents’ incomes, the calculation of child support can become rather challenging. Worse yet, if you do not entirely understand the process or you are not paying close enough attention, the calculation of child support in your case might be unfair and inequitable to both you and even your child. Here are some telltale signs that the child support payments might not be fair enough.

3 Signs Your Child Support Determination in Wisconsin Might Not Be Fair

If you have a feeling that something is not quite right about your child support agreement, follow that instinct. If any of them seem apparent to you, enlist the assistance of an experienced lawyer who can help you make the child support payments fairer for you and your child. Keep vigilant and watch out for these warning signs during the proceedings:

1. High-Income Miscalculations Relative to What a Child’s Actual Needs Might Be—For parents with higher income levels, be them through shared or sole custody, the parent paying child support should be able to argue that the typical Wisconsin-mandated percentage for child support is far too much to raise the child adequately. Many judges might be sympathetic to the idea that a child does not need to be supported with tens of thousands of dollars every month.

2. Low-Income Biases That Result in Noncustodial Parents Being Left Behind—In some cases, the noncustodial parent might have a particularly low income, be unemployed, or even disabled. In that sense, he or she might not be able to afford the child-support payments no matter how fair the percentage seems. Unfortunately, what often happens is the noncustodial parent is given default status or punished financially for other reasons without any input or collaboration from his or her perspective. Be aware of this and make sure it does not happen to you by taking proper precautions throughout the divorce proceedings, including arguing for exceptions to the typical percentage.

3. Misrepresentations of Average Time Spent with Child for Each Parent—Some parents might overestimate the time they spend with the child so that they can collect more child support. If you do not trust your co-parent in this respect, pay close attention to this. Keep track of all the time spent with the child leading up to and during the divorce process for both you and the other parent. If possible, document it so you have evidence of the time spent. Then show it to your lawyer when the time arrives to discuss child support.

Contact a Waukesha County Child Support Lawyer

If you are concerned about possible inequity in decisions made regarding child-support payments or you simply have some questions about divorce in general, reach out to a knowledgeable and experienced Waukesha, WI divorce attorney. Contact the talented legal team at Bucher, Wolff & Sonderhouse, LLP, by calling 262-232-6699 anytime, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to learn more and schedule a free consultation about your particular case.

Sources:

https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/148688241.pdf

https://www.irp.wisc.edu/wp/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/CS-2018-2020-T5.pdf

https://casetext.com/statute/wisconsin-statutes/the-family/chapter-767-actions-affecting-the-family/subchapter-vi-support-and-maintenance/section-767511-child-support

https://dcf.wisconsin.gov/files/publications/pdf/824.pdf