Guideline Child Support in California - What is It?
Posted on Mon, Jul 25, 2011 @ 01:33 PM
This post helps explain "guideline" child support and how it is calculated for California. What is true for the state of California is true for all of its legal jurisdictions, including our home county of San Mateo.
For the unititiated, California law regarding child support payments can be baffling. The California Family Law Code reads, simply:
California Family Law Code 4055
(a) The statewide uniform guideline for determining child support orders is as follows:
CS = K (HN - (H%) (TN)
This complex calculation belies its very simple purpose. This particular piece of Algebra was written to ensure that children receive the generous financial support they need, while also making certain that each parent provides only their equitable share of this support. In California Family Law, when the amount of child support set according to the above calculation, it is known as "guideline support."
The above equation takes many factors into account, including the relative income of both parents, the number of children in the family, and the amount of time children spend in the care of each parent, according to specific time-sharing or visitation plans. All of these numbers help to modify and balance the amount of money each parent pays in support. Nearly all family law attorneys rely on a program called DissoMaster™to develop accurate child support calculations. DissoMaster™was written according to the guidelines for child support from the Californial Family Law Code, and it accepts a variety of data related to income, family size, and visitation schedules to produce an accounting spreadsheet that can be used by attorneys to negotiate the guidelines for support.
In families with uncomplicated estates, the calculation is ordinarily quite straightforward, and DissoMaster™can account for many forms of income, such as interest from passive investments, employee bonuses, grants of stock, income from rental properties, disability payments, and Social Security, and their associated tax consequences.
In our practice, we also encounter clients with with large, complicated estates--family trusts, businesses, joint and private investment accounts, retirement savings. In these situations we partner with experienced forensic accountants and carefully review the income, asset, and tax data to ensure that the child support guidelines are accurate.
Of course, the paragraphs above describe only "guideline" support. In some special circumstances, such as the amount of support paid by high-income earners, a judge is authorized to step outside the prescribed guidelines and award support above, or below what the state mandates in the California Family Code. In another post, we will take a look at some of these special circumstances.
Of special note: The California Department of Child Support Services offers a useful "Guideline Calculator" that can help individuals estimate their child support responsibilities. You can reach the DCSS site by clicking here.