Failing to keep up with your court-ordered child support payments has always been something that legislators and judges in Ohio have taken quite seriously. In addition to wage garnishments and the seizure of tax refunds and assets, judges in Medina, Brunswick or Wadsworth, and other communities have the power to sentence you to serve time in jail for contempt for violating a court order to pay support.

Legal Duty To Support Child

Child support is usually a factor in separation or divorce cases, but it may also become an issue in cases where the parents of a child are not married. If you are the biological parent of a child, or if you are the father of a child and you have acknowledged paternity or been found by a court to be a child’s parent, you have a legal obligation to pay toward the support of the child.

There are several components of a support order in addition, including:

  • Monthly or weekly support payments for each child
  • Health insurance coverage
  • Payment of medical expenses not reimbursed by private health insurance
  • A determination of how dependency tax exemptions are allocated between the parents

Obligation To Pay Child Support

A mother and father are each responsible for the support of their children in Medina, Brunswick or Wadsworth under the state’s child support guidelines that are used by the courts to decide the amount of money needed to support a child. The guidelines also help courts decide the share of the support that each of the parents should pay. use of the guidelines is mandatory under Ohio law.

Unless the parties in a divorce, separation or child support proceeding come to an agreement before submitting the issue to a court or administrative agency in Medina, Brunswick or Wadsworth, child support is computed using a worksheet, and two charts called the “Basic Child Support Schedule” and the Cash Medical Support Schedule.”

By using the Child Support Computation Worksheet, the parties, a judge, or an administrative agency charged can determine the economic cost of raising a child based on the income and other information provided by the parents. Each parent’s pro-rata share of the required amount of support is then computed based on each party’s percentage of their combined yearly income.

The child support formula used in Ohio takes into consideration daycare and health insurance expenses associated with raising the child. Judges awarding child support also pro-rate medical expenses for the children that are not covered by health insurance in the same proportions as used to determine the amount of child support payable by each parent.

Child Support Term

A parent may be obligated to pay child support until the later of the child reaching 18 years of age or graduating from high school. The parents of a child can agree to continue child support beyond that which the law in Medina, Brunswick or Wadsworth requires. This might occur with children attending college. The power of the court to order the payment of child support usually ends when a child reaches 18 or graduates from high school.

Change In Circumstances

Because child support payments continue for such a long period of time, a paying parent’s financial circumstances can change. Loss of a job and a serious injury or illness might prevent a parent from meeting the financial obligations ordered by a judge. If that happens to you, you should contact an attorney about petitioning the court for a modification of the support order.

According to Ohio law, a parent seeking the modification of an Ohio child support order must prove a substantial change of circumstances since the most recent support or modification order. As a guideline for courts, state law sets 10 percent as the minimum change from the previous support amount that must exist for the granting of a modification.

Contact A Medina Child Support Attorney

Medina, Brunswick or Wadsworth child support attorney Thomas Erb Jr. represents people in all phases of child support and modification matters. For further information, call Medina child support attorney Thomas Erb Jr. today at {P:P3:SUB:PHONE} to schedule an appointment to discuss your options.

This blog is designed for general information only. The information presented in this blog
should not be construed to be formal legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship. Each case is its own set of facts and circumstances.

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