Perhaps the most common issue to arise in divorce and family law cases is child support. In any case where a child is in the custody of one parent (custodial parent), that child has the right to support from the other parent (non-custodial parent). This right to support belongs to the child, not the custodial parent, and this support cannot be waived absent a valid reason.
The law presumes that any child born to a married couple is the natural child of both the husband and wife. If either the husband or wife wish to challenge this presumption, then they must present clear and convincing evidence that the husband is not the biological father of the child. This can be done in a number of ways under the direction of an experienced attorney.
If the child is born out of wedlock, then paternity must be established before an order for child support can be entered. This begins by filing a Petition to Establish Paternity and Child Support in the family court of the county in which the child lives or in the county in which the alleged father lives. Once that happens, paternity can be established by both parties signing an acknowledgement of paternity indicating that both parties are the natural parent of the child. If one party refuses to sign, paternity can be established by DNA testing through family court.
Once paternity has been established and custody awarded by a judge, the Court must still decide how much child support the non-custodial parent must pay. The Alabama State Legislature adopted guidelines to be used in the calculation of child support. Those guidelines are contained in the appendix to Rule 32 of the Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration. To determine the amount of child support owed under the guidelines, you must fill out the required child support forms: CS-41, CS-42, CS-43, and CS-47. Each of these forms must be submitted to the court for the judge’s review and approval.
Those forms take into account the income of both parties, preexisting child support and alimony obligations from previous marriages, any amounts paid for health insurance or daycare on behalf of the child, and the number of children at issue. The income of both parties is added together and applied to the chart in the appendix to Rule 32. That chart gives you the total child support obligation for both parties based on their combined income and the number of children. The non-custodial parent pays a percentage of that total support number equal to their percentage of the total income of the parties, minus any healthcare and childcare costs that the parent pays.
For example, if a husband and wife each make $5,000.00 per month for a combined total of $10,000.00 per month. Then according to the appendix in Rule 32, the total support due for one child is $1,075.00 per month. Each parent would be responsible for half of that amount. Therefore, the non-custodial parent would pay $537.50 per month in child support, less any amount paid for childcare or healthcare.
The amount of child support that a non-custodial parent will be required to pay has been boiled down to an equation. The amount of child support recommended under this equation is binding and can only be departed from in a narrow set of circumstances with the assistance of an attorney.
If you or a loved one want to establish or modify child support, it is best to contact a divorce lawyer right away. The dedicated lawyers at Sheffield & Lentine have decades of experience representing our client’s interests in domestic relations and family law cases across the state. Feel free to call or email one of our attorneys today for a consultation.
DISCLAIMER: This article is meant to provide a starting point for discussing these issues with an experienced lawyer. This article does not constitute legal advice, nor does it form an attorney client relationship. No representation is made that the quality of legal services provided is greater than the quality of legal services provided by other lawyers. No representation is made that past outcomes are an indication of future success.