Roanoke and Southwest Virginia Child Support Attorneys

Providing support for your child is one of your fundamental duties as a parent. If you and your spouse or partner live together with your child, you probably provide support without even thinking about it—paying the rent or mortgage, buying groceries, clothing, and school supplies, paying medical or household bills.

When parents aren’t living together, things get more complicated. Both parents still have an obligation to support their children, but how that happens requires more thought. How much support is fair, and how and when does it get paid? If your child lives primarily with you, you may be concerned that you’re not getting enough financial support for your child. If your child lives primarily with the other parent, you may be worried about having enough resources to meet your own needs after providing for your child.

You want what’s best for your child, and you want child support to be predictable and fair. The best way to achieve those goals is to work with an experienced Virginia child support attorney. Contact Johnstone Law today.

Understanding Virginia Child Support

Unlike many issues in a Virginia divorce, separation, or child custody case, child support is not an issue on which parents can simply reach their own agreement. If parents do want to reach an agreement on child support, the court must approve the agreement, finding it to be in the best interest of the child.

In Virginia, child support is usually determined by calculations based on the Virginia Child Support Guidelines. These Guidelines try to assure children whose parents live apart the same level of support they would have if their parents lived together.

The formula provided by the Guidelines takes into account:

• Each parent’s income, less any allowable deductions
• The number of children to be supported
• The number of days the children are with each parent
• The cost of medical insurance, and which parent provides it
• The cost of work-related day care, if needed, and which parent pays for it
• Certain other expenses, such as extraordinary medical expenses

Using an “income shares” model, a total amount of child support owed is determined using the Guidelines. Then a percentage of support owed is allocated to each parent, with one parent’s support obligation offset against the other. Although there is a formula involved, the calculation of child support can be fairly complicated. As with any formula, the outcome is only as accurate as the figures used in the calculation. To ensure that the calculation of child support in your case is accurate and fair to both you and your children, it’s important to work with a family law attorney who is experienced in calculating child support using the Virginia Child Support Guidelines.

An attorney’s help is especially important when there are issues with one or both parents’ income. Common issues include a parent whose income is irregular or who works “under the table” with unreported income. Sometimes, a parent will try to conceal a source of income, or will be deliberately unemployed or underemployed, in an effort to pay less support or get the other parent to pay more support.

Deviation from the Virginia Child Support Guidelines

Virginia law presumes that the amount of child support determined by application of the Guidelines is correct, but that is a rebuttable presumption. In other words, if one parent is able to show that application of the guidelines would be unjust or inappropriate in their case, the court may deviate from the Guidelines in awarding support, with written findings explaining the reason for the deviation.

Some reasons a court may choose to deviate from the guidelines include:

• Extraordinary educational, medical, or other expenses of the child
• One or both parents has a high income that exceeds the Guideline amounts
• A shared custody arrangement that deviates significantly from standard visitation schedules

Regardless of the circumstances, the decision to deviate from the Virginia Child Support Guidelines is within the court’s discretion. If you believe a deviation is appropriate in your situation, an experienced family law attorney can help make your case to the court.

Work with an Effective Roanoke Child Support Attorney

Child support calculations are complex. Having a skilled Virginia child support attorney on your side can make sure that the outcome is fair, and that the result works for you and your children. The attorneys at Johnstone Law offer parents the benefit of over 30 years of combined experience in Virginia family law, including child support matters. We work with you to achieve an accurate calculation of your child support obligations and rights that allows you to move forward with confidence. If you have an existing support order that is no longer accurate based on changed circumstances, we can also help you modify your child support order.