Child Support: "Don't just stand there. Do something!"

St. Paul Child Support Appeal, Review, Litigation

Nobody can seriously dispute that times are tough and they aren’t going to be getting better any time soon. It doesn’t help that your family has split up and now there are two households to finance instead of one. Maybe you’ve started a second family with a new partner and have additional mouths to feed. There never seems to be enough money to go around and there is also no clearly fair way of deciding who gets how much of it. The law of child support essentially consists of a very crude legislative approximation of how much is needed to raise a child in the backdrop of how much the parents can realistically afford to provide.

Whether you’re paying more than you can afford to pay, or the child support you receive is just not enough to make ends meet, the basic premise is the same: You will continue to pay or receive the same court ordered amount until you do something to get your case reviewed. That means bring a motion and do it as soon as you can because any change in child support you might be entitled to is typically retroactive to the date you serve your motion on the other party.

As of August 1, 2008, the Minnesota Statues enacted into law Minn. Stat. §518A – the new Child Support Statute. The fact of the new law in itself may be reason enough to get your existing child support order reviewed by an attorney. You should take careful note that we have a new method for calculating child support in Minnesota, and some important new factors to be considered in determining the child support amount, such as the gross monthly incomes of both parents, the relative amount of time the child spends with each parent, and how much dependent medical or dental insurance costs the parent paying the premiums. Needless to say, everyone should know what effect the new law has on their existing support order or what they can anticipate paying/receiving on the establishment of a new child support obligation. What a perfect reason to come and see me for an initial consultation. Just bring in your tax returns and your check stubs and let us review child support for you. We can even show you how to work Minnesota’s new online child support calculator, so you can monitor your obligation properly on your own.

DISCLAIMER: This site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. The only way you can truly receive legal advice is to speak with an attorney about your specific situation. The content on this website aims to be informative to general principles of family law. The application of the law to your specific case is a service that only a legal professional can provide.

The Law Offices of James D. Capra, Located in St. Paul, services the entire Twin Cities area in all areas of Family Law. If you have a question about Divorce, Child Custody or Visitation, Spousal Support, Child Support, Alimony or any other area of family law do not hesitate to contact him. James A. Capra works with family law and divorce clients in Ramsey and Washington County, St. Paul, Oakdale, Woodbury, Maplewood, Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Dakota County and throughout the Twin Cities area.