Child Support

Like all states, Texas requires parents to financially support their children. When parents separate, divorce, or they have never been married, child support becomes an important issue. This is why you need an experienced child support lawyer on your side.

Many times, the least amicable divorces are high net worth divorces involving high value assets. When child support becomes a disputed issue in these cases, you need a child support lawyer who specializes in aggressively pursuing the financial support your child is entitled to, using smart negotiation skills and a keen understanding of Texas child support law.

Your child is entitled to a higher level of financial support proportional to parental income.

So, while you might be able to get by “just fine” with a lower level of financial support, your child support lawyer will explain that your child has a right to gain from a higher child support payment if the higher payment is within the other parent’s means. Thus, a court may order one parent or both parents to pay child support depending on the circumstances.

The most common scenario is that the parent who spends the least amount of time with the child will be obligated to make support payments for the child’s benefit to the other parent.

Our team will work with you to help ensure your case proceeds as smoothly as possible. Request a consultation today! 

Texas Child Support

The formula for calculating child support in Texas is based on several factors, starting with a parent’s gross income, after which certain allowable deductions are made. Once the net income is determined, it will be impacted by how many children the paying parent will be supporting. Health insurance is another factor that either the paying parent or the other parent may be responsible for, depending on the circumstances.

Texas courts assume that the support payment calculated by applying the guidelines will be appropriate. Still, the amount determined can be adjusted up or down if it can be shown to the court that the Texas child support payment is unfair or not in a child’s best interests. As a parent, you will have to request the court to adjust a payment before it formally issues a new Texas child support order. The court will evaluate many factors to determine if the payment should be adjusted.

Your Texas child support lawyer will explain the factors the court may review. This can include but is not limited to:

• Parental financial assets, reserves, and debts
• The needs of the child, especially in terms of childcare, educational costs, travel costs between homes, extracurricular expenses, and medical expenses when a child has special needs
• Spousal maintenance payments
• How much time the child spends with each parent
• Any other financial or other circumstance relevant to the case
  

The first step in child support is to have the support payment established through the courts. This makes it legally binding and enforceable. Those obligated to make child support payments are legally required to do so. If they do not, the order can be enforced through the courts. Child support payments can also be modified when a parent or the child has experienced a substantial change in circumstances, such as one of the following:

• One parent experiences a change in employment
• One parent experiences an increased medical expense due to an illness or injury
• A child experiences an increased medical expense due to an illness or injury

These payments can only be changed with an updated Texas child support court order.