At any point in time, the custodial or paying parent or the legal child guardian of the child can request a “modification” in the child support amount. They can ask for an increment or decrement in the amount ordered by the court.
In order to get assistance in the process, you can seek the help of a Lake Forest Divorce Attorney. They can aid you in the process by giving you the required legal guidance and support at all stages.
Situations in which modifications are granted
Under certain circumstances, you can ask for a change in the child support amount. Those circumstances include the following:
- You have been suspended or terminated from your job.
- You have a new position of employment or a new source of income.
- There are changes in the incomes of one or both parents.
- There are modifications taking place in custody or visitation-related decisions.
- The family structure changes, and the number of members reduce or increases.
- One of the parents is disabled.
- Either of the parents gets convicted and jailed for the crime.
- The military deployment of the guardian or parents.
Proofs are required for modification.
To seek a modification, it is essential to prove the necessary details. The information includes the income and expenditure of the parents along with the expenses incurred on child care and medical insurance. Some of the additional information required for the process is as follows:
- Proof of disability
- Proof of being imprisoned
- Income after retirement
- Benefits from unemployment
- The present status of custody and visitation rights
After assessing these details provided by both parents, the court will determine if a change is required in the already existing child support amount. If it is proved that a new amount is needed, the proportion of change will be decided.
If both parents agree on the amount of child support, they can sign a stipulated agreement. The court must file this agreement, and a lawyer can help create such a document. If there is no agreement, the parents will receive a court notice regarding their appearance. The judge or commissioner will ultimately be responsible for deciding the amount of child support.
If one of the parents resides in another state, the lawyer on one side can make a request to the other state regarding the review of the child support amount and ask for changes.
In order to request a modification, the case needs to be of an open kind. The process or request does not require any charges, and the request’s outcome depends on the details collected.
