Question:
Am I required to pay extra money for school costs like after school activities? Also, can child support be changed if my ex-spouse gets a raise?
Answer:
I do not practice law in your state. Therefore, I cannot inform you as to the specific laws of your state, but I can provide you with general tips in divorce.
The purpose of child support is to cover necessities of life, such as clothing, housing, and food. The items you listed are typically not covered under the child support orders in a decree of dissolution of marriage or paternity action. That said, many times these additional costs are addressed in a separate provision of the order. For instance, many child support orders address how the parties are to split costs for the child’s extra-curricular activities.
In Oklahoma where I’m licensed to practice, the most common way to divide these costs among the parties is to have each party pay his or her respective income percentage towards the total cost of the activity. For instance, if mother’s gross monthly income is $2,000 and father’s gross monthly income is $3,000, then mother would pay 40% of the cost and father would pay 60% of the cost.
Another common way is to agree to split the costs 50-50. Generally, the party incurring the cost has to submit proof of payment and request for reimbursement to the other parent, who then has a certain amount of time to pay their share of the cost.
Child support can be modified based on a showing of a significant change of circumstances by the party seeking modification. For instance, if your ex-spouse is making more money now than at the time when the child support order was entered, you can ask the court to modify child support to either decrease your monthly obligation or increase her obligation, depending on the specific facts of your case.
If you need additional assistance and would like to speak to an attorney licensed in your state regarding your rights and obligations under your state’s law, feel free to contact one of Cordell & Cordell’s offices in your state to schedule an initial consultation.
To arrange an initial consultation to discuss divorce rights for men with a Cordell & Cordell attorney, contact Cordell & Cordell.
Dan Pearce is an Online Editor for Lexicon, focusing on subjects related to the legal services of customers, Cordell & Cordell and Cordell Planning Partners. He has written countless pieces on MensDivorce.com, detailing the plight of men and fathers going through the divorce experience, as well as the issues seniors and their families experience throughout the estate planning journey on ElderCareLaw.com. Mr. Pearce has managed websites and helped create content, such as the Men’s Divorce Newsletter and the YouTube series, “Men’s Divorce Countdown.” He also has been a contributor on both the Men’s Divorce Podcast and ElderTalk with TuckerAllen.
Mr. Pearce assisted in fostering a Cordell Planning Partners practice area specific for Veterans, as they deal with the intricacies of their benefits while planning for the future. He also helped create the Cordell Planning Partners Resource Guide and the Cordell Planning Partners Guide to Alternative Residence Options, specific for seniors with questions regarding their needs and living arrangements.