Child Support

In Florida, it is public policy that both parents owe a duty of support to their minor child. In order to protect the best interests of the child, this obligation typically cannot be waived by either parent.

To determine the amount of child support, Florida courts calculate the obligation using statutory guidelines. The primary variables included in the calculation are both of the parents’ net incomes, child care costs, health care costs, and the number of court ordered overnights each parent exercises per year. If a parent is willfully underemployed, the court may impute income to them for child support purposes. Once the values of these variables are determined, the child support guidelines provide the parties with the statutory obligation amount.

However, there is some wiggle room with this number (but not much). Courts may deviate up or down 5% from the guideline amount after considering all relevant factors, and possibly more if there are written findings and justifications. Some factors considered for deviation purposes include a child’s age, special needs of the child, the amount of time one party is with the child, significant transportation expenses to effectuate timesharing, assets of the parent, or anything the court deems appropriate.

In general, after the child support obligation is ordered, it will continue until the child’s eighteenth birthday and will then automatically terminate unless otherwise ordered by the court or agreed upon by the parties. For instance, the court may order for child support to extend beyond the eighteenth birthday in cases where the child has some sort of mental or physical incapacity prior to turning eighteen. Alternatively, the parties can agree or the court can order for child support to extend to the date of the child’s high school graduation in situations where the child turned eighteen during their senior year.

If you have any questions about establishing, modifying or enforcing child support obligations, please contact our attorneys at Rachael Ledet Rudin, P.A. to set up a consultation.