Nassau County Child Support Lawyers
In today’s world, couples continue to get married. Unfortunately, they also continue to get divorced. While some divorces are amicable, those that have children often become just the opposite. As a result, the custodial parent will seek child support from the other parent in an effort to ensure their child will not lack anything they need, such as clothing or food. Yet while many parents willingly pay child support month after month to help their child as much as possible, some choose to do just the opposite. If you find yourself needing additional information on child support law and how a lawyer can help with this important legal aspect, read on to learn more.
The Basics of Child Support
While a child support decree can be completed to include the child’s needs at the time of the divorce, it can also be modified when necessary along the way. Since the child support order remains in effect until the child reaches the age of majority, it’s almost inevitable that it will need to be changed as the years go by, such as when parents and children relocate or if a health situation arises that requires more money for the child’s care. In addition, a child support order can be multi-jurisdictional, meaning multiple states may become involved if necessary.
Calculating Child Support
Once it’s decided child support will be part of a divorce settlement, both parents must attempt to determine the amount of child support to be paid. Because this is such an important matter, state statutes offer specific guidelines for calculating child support payments. While some states have developed specific worksheets to help parents with this process, it’s vital to also consult with an experienced child support lawyer before submitting any financial documents to the court. In many child support cases, this can be the most difficult point for both parties to agree upon, and often requires a hearing before a judge to finalize any details. If a hearing becomes necessary, it’s vital to have an experienced and knowledgeable attorney present as well, ensuring the best interests of you and your child will be protected. Additional information on this topic can be found at Your text to link….
Child Support Enforcement
If there is one area of child support that often requires the assistance of a skilled child support attorney, it’s enforcing a child support agreement that is being violated. According to the Child Support Enforcement Act of 1984, district attorneys are required to help a parent collect child support if needed. Along with this, an experienced child support lawyer can discuss the various ways that the money owed can be collected. Since a child support order is essentially a civil judgement, the court has a variety of ways to collect unpaid child support. Among the most commonly used are wage garnishments, seizure of bank accounts and personal property, and placing liens on real estate. In situations where extreme enforcement measures must be taken, the court may suspend a driver’s license and passports, and possibly even sentence a person to jail. For more details on child support enforcement procedures, visit Your text to link….
Child Support Obligation
Contrary to what many parents believe, the obligation to pay child support is independent of other rights and responsibilities of the non-custodial parent. For example, a judge will often decide child support responsibilities and visitation rights at the same hearing, which often leads the non-custodial parent to think both issues are mutually dependent, when in fact they are not. Because of this, even if visitation issues arise and the custodial parent denies visitation, the original child support must be paid. In these situations, consulting with an experienced child support attorney can help in gaining a better understanding of the expectations and rights of each parent.
Why Hire an Attorney?
Needless to say, there are multiple reasons why you should hire an attorney who has the experience and knowledge needed to guide you through these complex cases. For example, if the divorce is not amicable, it may be difficult for you to deal directly with the other parent. Along with this, your attorney can ensure the other parent and their attorney do not unnecessarily delay the proceedings, helping you gain the money needed to properly care for your child.
Schedule a Free Consultation Today
If you find yourself needing help understanding the complexities associated with child support agreements, it’s vital to schedule a free consultation with an attorney as soon as possible. By calling the Spodek Law Group at 888-608-3420, you can be assured of receiving legal advice from an experienced and knowledgeable professional. Rather than sit back and let others fail to live up to their legal obligations, let the Spodek Law Group ensure the rights of you and your child are fully protected.
Can the court hearing be rescheduled due to my work?
Court dates aren’t something people look forward to. Not only are they stressful because of their legal implications, but they’re often something that interferes with our day to day routines and responsibilities. That being said, it’s not always possible to postpone a court date for your divorce. There are some acceptable reasons to postpone a court date. The procedure for postponing a divorce hearing includes requesting a new court date and the confirming the new court date. The court will only grant your request for a new court date IF it meets their standards for what is acceptable. If your reason is acceptible, the judge will grand a postponement and set a new date. That brings us to the main question.
Will a judge reschedule a hearing because of your work schedule? The three good reasons to postpone are (1) If the couple is trying to reconcile, (2) If there is a medical appointment or another professional appointment, or (3) If one side isn’t completely prepared for the hearing. One could definitely argue that work is a possible reason to postpone. However, both parties may sometimes work and usually you can take a day off work to attend a court hearing, especially one that is as important to your life as this one. If you did request a hearing, you would need to show exactly why you can’t afford to take a day off work in order to attend the hearing. In some cases, the judge might consider this.
To make the request for postponement, your lawyer will need to file a motion with the court to postpone. Sometimes they call a postponement request a “continuance.” They’re both the same thing. There are some courts that want you to get the other party to agree to the postponement, since it may be something that they very fervently wish to get out of the way. The judge will listen to the motion at a motion hearing and if he grants it, he’ll set another court date.
Confirmation can be obtained by checking the court order issued. This will show you the date of the new hearing. If you don’t have a copy of the order, call your attorney to check on the date OR you can call the court clerk or the opposing party at the hearing to see what the date is. It’s very important that you keep the new date, whatever the reason. You cannot perpetually avoid a divorce hearing simply because it is scheduled during your work. Eventually, you’ll need to take a day off work to attend the hearing, and the good news is that the majority of employers are very understanding about this.
A lawyer can advise you on whether or not it’s a good idea to postpone the hearing. In reality, you’re just postponing the inevitable because eventually you have to take a day off work anyway. Most employers give you personal days or a certain number of days that you can miss per year so that there’s no real excuse to keep using work as a way to get out of a divorce hearing. And remember that the judge can always deny the request to postpone if he doesn’t think your reason is a good enough one to skip a hearing for. Divorce is a legal matter and eventually you’ll need to face your hearings and court date so that you can resolve the legal matter. The longer you let the hearing date extend to, the longer it’s going to take to have your divorce finalized so that you can move on with your life.
Divorce is never a pleasant experience and it can cause you a lot of inconvenience during the time you spend getting everything together and making all of the court dates. For those who are committed to getting through their divorce, though, there’s no good reason to keep putting off a court date.
He threatens to fight me in court if I won’t sign over custody
Divorces that involve children are often very difficult. In a best-case scenario, the parents are concerned for the well-being of the child but may not agree upon what’s in his or her best interest. In some cases, though, the child is used as a bargaining chip. It’s not uncommon for one parent or another to threaten to fight the other party if custody is not signed over, using the threat of court time to get what he or she wants. Fortunately, such threats are not necessarily as effective as one might think and they certainly should not be grounds for giving up custody.
The Basis of Custody
Custody is not decided by a parent deciding to fight in court, nor is it necessarily always decided by the wishes of either party in a divorce. Instead, the main consideration is doing what is in the best interests of the child, a factor that takes into account both the child’s physical and emotional well-being. Custody is certainly not as simple as being the first person to file for custody in court or even being the party that seems to contact the court most often with complaints about the actions of his or her former spouse.
When you go through a divorce, it’s in the interest of the court to make sure that your child receives as much stability and care as possible. While the court certainly cannot determine which parent is the most loving or who has the most meaningful connection with the child, the court will take the attitudes of both parties as well as the wishes of the child into account. An individual who seems to use custody as leverage will not necessarily be looked favorably on by the court, though it can be difficult to determine the reasons behind an individual’s actions.
Is it Worth Fighting
If you are interested in maintaining any form of custody over your child, it’s important not to sign over your parental rights simply because your former spouse threatens to take you to court. If you go to court, you will be forced to abide by the decision made there, one that will likely have input from both parties as well as that of the court. If you make a custody agreement without going to court, though, it’s likely that this decision will be accepted and will become the agreed-upon arrangement going forth.
It is possible to change a custody agreement after it has been signed, but doing so can be very difficult. After all, it is the assumption of the court that you agreed to this custody arrangement and that doing so was in the best interest of the child. It would be an uphill battle for anyone who tries to fight against an agreement that he or she signed, and doing so would generally require that something significant has changed since the original agreement went into place. Making any changes would almost certainly involve the type of court fight that your former spouse was threatening in the first place.
Standing Your Ground
While you cannot stop your former spouse from making threats about fighting you in court, it is well within your rights to refuse to sign over custody of your child. It’s better to have the fight now than to have it later, especially as doing so will cause more instability for your child. The agreement you make when you get divorced will be seen as the default going forward, so make sure that you fight for an arrangement that you can live with and that will provide the healthiest possible environment for your child.
If you are threatened with a fight in court, it’s vital that you work with an attorney. Not only will a good lawyer let you know how the custody process works, but he or she can provide valuable insight as to whether or not either the wishes of you or your former spouse are realistic when it comes to custody arrangements. While the best custody agreements are those that are made with cooperating partners, you should not feel bullied into accepting an arrangement that is unfair to you or to your child. If your partner is will to threaten you with a fight in court, it’s better to get that fight out of the way now than to have to deal with it in the future.
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