Philadelphia Child Support Lawyer
Serving Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery & Philadelphia County
As a parent in Pennsylvania, you are obligated to support your children financially until they turn 18, or even longer if they have special needs. This rule applies whether you are married, divorced or even if you were never married. In any Pennsylvania divorce where the couple has one or more children together, the court will decide on the issue of child support, including which parent may be obligated to pay child support to the other, and how much child support must be paid. These matters are not cut-and-dried and must often be litigated when the parents disagree over the payment of support. In these situations, advice and representation from an experienced Philadelphia child support lawyer can prove invaluable to achieving a fair outcome for yourself and your kids. Learn more below about child support in Pennsylvania, and contact the Law Offices of Lauren H. Kane for help with child support and related matters in a Philadelphia divorce.
How is child support calculated in Pennsylvania?
The Pennsylvania child support guidelines use an income shares model to determine how much child support is owed. These guidelines take into account the incomes of both parents in terms of both their net incomes and their earning capacities. The needs of the children are also taken into account, along with the ability of the parent to pay. The court can order either or both parents to provide medical support and can require the noncustodial parent to provide health insurance if available at a reasonable cost. Similarly, the court can order either or both parents to pay educational costs. Postsecondary education is a shared responsibility of both parents under Pennsylvania child support law.
How can a divorce lawyer help in the area of child support?
Our Philadelphia divorce lawyer can play a valuable role in the determination of child support in your divorce case. For one thing, when collecting information on a parent’s income, the court looks at income derived from just about every source imaginable, including wages, salaries, bonuses, fees, compensation in kind, commissions, business income, gains derived from dealings in property, interest, rents, royalties, dividends, annuities, income from life insurance and endowment contracts, all forms of retirement, pensions, social security benefits, unemployment, workers’ comp, lottery winnings, income tax refunds, insurance settlements, and on and on. Philadelphia family law attorney Lauren H. Kane has 38 years of experience handling Pennsylvania divorce matters, including complex divorce cases involving complicated assets structures for one or both spouses in the property division. We can make sure all income is reported completely and accurately to get the right child support calculation, including uncovering areas where a spouse has underreported or hidden income.
Also, even after the guidelines amount has been calculated, the family law judge is authorized to deviate from that amount for unusual needs or extraordinary expenses. If you are arguing for or against a deviation from the guidelines amount, the Law Offices of Lauren H. Kane can help you formulate a strategy, gather relevant evidence, and present a compelling case why a deviation is or is not appropriate in your Philadelphia child custody case.
Make Sure Your Kids Get the Support They Need. Call the Law Offices of Lauren H. Kane in a Philadelphia Divorce
To find out more about child support in your Philadelphia divorce, call the Law Offices of Lauren H. Kane at 215-918-9453 to review your case with a dedicated and caring Philadelphia child support lawyer.
