North Carolina Divorce Law – Raleigh Divorce Lawyer
Divorce Laws, Forms, Calculators, and Family Law Help
Making Your Ex Pay Child Support Historically, child support payments have not been taken seriously, and most commonly were not paid or not paid in full. Strong efforts have been made over the last two decades to improve the situation. The situation has improved, but there are still many families living in poverty as a […]
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Just as in married families, children must eventually leave the nest and become independent. When exactly child support ends varies from state to state, but is typically between eighteen and twenty-one (when the child becomes a legal adult). Other situations may result in an even earlier termination of support, such as the child taking action […]
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Child support orders can generally be changed by the agreement of both spouses. Any change would need to be in writing, and must be signed by a judge. If parents cannot agree, the parent wanting to change court ordered child support must persuade the court that there has been a “significant change of circumstance” since […]
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The biggest source of friction about child support is the lack of accounting for how the funds are spent. The funds provided for child support must be spent for the benefit of the children. Using the funds for other purposes may result in a court intervention. However, most states do not make any provision to […]
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In almost all cases, one parent has primary custody of the couple’s children. However, when there is real shared physical custody, where the children spend a substantial amount of time with each parent, the payment of child support can be greatly affected. In these cases, the amount of time the child spends with each parent […]
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States differ on whether divorced parents must pay for college or trade school. About half the states allow the court to require parents to pay. Several factors may be considered by a judge, including the parents’ ability to pay, the child’s ability to benefit from the education, the expectations set when the parents were together, […]
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Parents are, of course, responsible for the medical expenses of their children. The bulk of these expenses are covered by health insurance in most families. There is no standard approach among states as to how the cost of insurance or the cost of uncovered medical expenses figures into child support orders. Typically, parents will identify […]
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The child support guidelines have become more of the rule than the exception in determining the amount of support to be paid. However, they are not set in stone, and each state allows variation from the guidelines. Judges must justify any deviation in a written finding. Among the justifications judges may use are: The overall […]
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When divorcing couples divide their property they, or their lawyers, often search for hidden assets to ensure a fair settlement or judgment. Child support is based on income, which results in a search for all sources of income. Information about the bulk of income for wage earners is found on pay stubs. They reveal the […]
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Failing to invest the time necessary to understand the true costs of raising your children is likely to result in on-going conflict with your spouse. Our experience is that most people underestimate the true costs involved in raising children. This is partly due to the difficulty most of us have balancing our family budgets month […]
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