South Florida Attorney Eric N. Klein

Child Support in Florida

Florida's statutes require that guidelines be used in establishing new child support obligations or modifying existing obligations in a Florida court. Florida's guidelines taking into account all income and earnings of both parents as well as the children's health care needs.

Overall, the statutes and courts will consider:

• How much the custodial parent earns
• How much the non-custodial parent earns
• The number of children
• The amount of time spent with each parent

Unfortunately, the Florida statutes do not take into account the actual amount being spent on each child. This means that while your child may be a gifted soccer player or an aspiring ballerina, the court will not consider this when it awards child support to parents. Frequently, this causes a divorce to be more difficult for a child than it needs to be. Not only is the child being forced to deal with parents that no longer want to be married but they may be asked to give up something they love or truly enjoy.

In addition to not taking into account expenditures on the child's behalf, the court doesn't account for other financial obligations of the parents. This can include things like car payments, mortgage payments, or rent. This can create an excessive amount of financial strain on one of the parents.

For these reasons, it is important to have an experienced family lawyer handle your divorce. The Boca Raton family lawyers of Klein Attorneys will help you come to a settlement that will allow your children to continue the activities they love while not subjecting the parents to unfair financial burdens. Contact them at 561-353-2600 if you are considering a divorce or need to re-negotiate a child support arrangement.