When a divorce involves young children, the family law judge will make important decisions that determine custody, visitation, and child support payments. To aid the judge, Texas considers various factors and components plugged into a formula used to calculate what the non-custodial parent will pay to ensure the children are cared for.
Child support modification is based on children’s needs and the ability to deliver those needs. The court order issued when children are toddlers may need to be modified in the ensuing years. When material changes have impacted you, your children, or your ex-spouse, necessitating a revision of how your children are taken care of, a Frisco child support modification lawyer could guide the process.
Parents paying or receiving child support are subject to strict Texas guidelines, but there is some leeway when children require specialized care, when the parents’ income is significantly different, when the parents have other children in multiple households, or when the non-custodial parent is paying support to five or more children.
Texas sets 20 percent of a non-custodial parent’s net income as the threshold to be paid for one child and five percent more for each additional child. A child support modification attorney in Frisco could help co-parents analyze these numbers and reach a fair arrangement.
When certain conditions change, parents have the ability to petition the family court that determined the original custody and child support to modify it. The parties could work with each other and their lawyers to hammer out agreeable terms and then present them to the judge for a new court order. Our Frisco attorneys take care to handle child support modification talks in as friendly and sensitive a way as possible because the outcome must always be what is best for the children. The judge will decide if modification is appropriate if an agreement cannot be reached.
The ability to modify a child support order is based on what has materially changed since the original order was entered. The criteria also affect any modifications and include:
When the original support information has changed materially, the court is open to modifying the court order for support. A trusted Frisco child support modification attorney could help collect evidence of any applicable circumstances.
Big life changes must occur before the judge considers child support modification. When one parent loses a job, is promoted to a higher-paying job, or is in a new relationship and has another child, the court will consider modifying an order. In addition, if either parent falls ill and cannot work or a child incurs substantial and expensive medical needs, a modification may be appropriate.
Because a material change must occur to modify a child support order, it is worth considering if the order could be terminated instead. When an ex-spouse’s new spouse adopts the child, or the child joins the military, termination of child support is possible. Generally, support ends when the child turns 18.
An ex-spouse ordered to pay child support should take care to avoid some of the schemes the court has seen. Exes cannot ask for child support to be lowered if they quit their jobs or intentionally take a job that pays less than they are capable of earning. Call our Frisco child support modification attorneys for guidance in these sensitive matters.
A child support ruling is based on current information that may become outdated and irrelevant in the ensuing years. Texas is amenable to modifying it if one parent’s circumstances change, whether you lose a job, are promoted, remarry, have another child, or suffer a debilitating accident.
There is no reason that unforeseen life changes should lead to fights and unnecessary angst. The Texas courts recognize the need to adjust support orders over time, and our Frisco child support modification lawyers are ready to help you do so seamlessly. Contact us now to schedule a consultation.
Our Law Firm’s approach to your case is based on individual circumstances. Whether it is a simple negotiated settlement, or it requires an aggressive approach, we will protect and defend your best interests.
