Minnesota law supports the idea that both parents are financially responsible for any child that they have together. The father traditionally paid child support to the mother of the children. This was almost always because the mother of the children was presumed to be the best custodian of the children and the father was the breadwinner for the family.
These outdated notions no longer rule the world of family law. Today there are many arrangements under which parents of children, who no longer wish to live together, are able to financially and equally support their children. Still, where one parent primarily lives with the children and acts as their custodial parent, the noncustodial parent will most likely be making payments to support their everyday expenses.
In every case in Minnesota, the court has the last word on whether a specified amount is fair and reasonable. The court’s involvement will be less when the parents are able to work out an arrangement together, but the court will still need to approve the agreement. The court is basically performing a balancing test to find an amount of money that is high enough to support the child, yet low enough to keep the noncustodial parent from bankruptcy.
A Mankato child support lawyer at Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd., can help you navigate your child support disputes amid your divorce. Whether you are receiving it or paying it, we can help you determine the amount, where it will come from, who it will come from, and advocate for your needs should your situation change.
Child support is one of the key issues that must be decided in a divorce because children are always entitled to have financial support from both their mother and from their father. Child support in Minnesota is required even if the paying parent has no visitation or doesn’t spend time with the child because it is considered a fundamental right of every child to be supported by both his/her mother and father. To ensure that every child gets the support that he or she needs, the courts will generally use a standard formula in order to determine the appropriate amount of child support that must be paid.
Under Minnesota law, the following information will be taken into account to determine the appropriate amount of child support the noncustodial parent will pay to the custodial parent:
Based on all of this information, the appropriate amount of child support can be determined, and a Mankato attorney could help you with this process. Standard child support formulas are used to ensure that every child gets adequate support from both parents. While you can deviate from these standard formulas in some cases if you and your spouse negotiate an agreement to something different, the court may not approve a payment of a smaller amount of child support unless there is a compelling reason to do so. Once the amount of child support payments is determined, you must pay as required or face court action to enforce the child support order.
When you are ordered to pay child support for your child or children, you generally are required to continue paying the support up until the time when your child reaches the age of 18. This is the time when your child legally becomes an adult.
However, while this is the general rule, there are some exceptions to this rule. The exceptions may be court-ordered or you and your spouse may agree on a longer-term arrangement for child support in an out-of-court settlement. Generally, you cannot agree to stop paying child support before a child turns 18, but you can enter into an agreement to pay child support for a longer period of time once a child has become an adult.
There are several situations where it is common for a parent to be obligated to pay child support after a child’s 18th birthday. For example, a parent may be required to pay child support until the child graduates from high school, even if this event does not occur until after the child is 18. A parent can also be ordered to pay ongoing support for a child for longer than the child’s 18th birthday if the child has special needs and/or will require ongoing and costly medical care and support after his or her 18th birthday. Sometimes, a couple will also agree that child support payments should continue until after the child has graduated from college, if this is determined to be appropriate as part of settlement negotiations.
Once child support has been ordered, the money will typically be taken directly from the paycheck of the paying parent before the paycheck is paid out. Those who are obligated to pay child support must continue to pay for the entire time that their court obligation exists. If you are facing financial problems or a change in circumstance that makes paying child support difficult or impossible as ordered, you cannot just stop paying. Instead, you will need to petition the court to make a change to the existing support agreement. A Mankato attorney should be able to assist you in making such a petition for or in responding to one if your ex-spouse is seeking to stop child support.
If you are paying child support, you need to ensure that you budget for it in your financial planning. This means you need to know how long you can expect to be obligated to pay child support. An experienced Mankato child support lawyer can help you to argue for the support arrangement that you feel is appropriate in your situation.
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