Can a Rate of Return be Attributed to Assets for Purposes of Calculating Guideline Child Support in San Diego Superior Court for a Divorce, Legal Separation or Paternity?

Child support cases, which include paternity, divorce, or legal separation, has the San Diego Superior Court Judge to calculate the California Guideline child support at a noticed motion. If parents cannot agree on child support, the Judge must decide the child support amount based on the guideline calculation. There are also cases where a request to deviate from the state guidelines may be made. Most cases in which Child support is ordered are of legal separation, divorce, and paternity, where there are minor children. Minor children (excluding the children having special needs) means graduating from high school and being 18 years of age or 19 years of age. In some cases, what is considered “income” becomes a disputed issue resulting in litigation. For most family law cases for child support calculation, the parties can agree on either the guideline or a non guideline amount. The Law Office of Doppelt and Forney, APLC has full time licensed California attorneys who offer a virtual consultation up to 30 minutes at no charge. You can call 800-769-4749 to schedule.

The guideline child support calculations involves many factors which are listed below; however, one of the most important in these is both the time share and the income of the parties. Other factors which are used in the guideline child support calculation, consist of (but are not limited to) the following listed below:

• wages and salaries
• filing status of the parties
• number of federal exemptions
• number of children of the parties
• percentage of time with the noncustodial parent
• TANF plus any child support received
• other taxable income
• self-employment income
• new spouse income
• spousal support paid to another marriage
• necessary job-related expenses
• health insurance
• required union dues
• interest paid for a primary residence
• mandatory retirement
• the property tax paid for a primary residence
• hardship deductions
• other non-taxable income

One of the following issues among these is income. A share of the parents combined child support income is used to calculate the net income for calculation purposes under the state guideline for child support. If there is an amount of money present in an account, interest which is paid on the capital may be considered income by the Judge. So also are either short term or intermediate-term treasury bills or certificates of the deposits which pay interest. The certificates of these deposits are normally from major financial institutions such as Citi Bank, Bank of America, Chase, or others. However, in some cases, you will need an expert opinion as to the reasonable rate of return. The amount of the interest will vary depending on the prime rate and other factors at the time the Court hears the child support motion.

The equity of a primary residence is not used for attributing a rate of return back under the California Law. It can be more complicated than it would appear. There’s a state rule calculator “online”, and you can utilize this to calculate your child amount for your case. Also, an attorney can offer you a private discussion and calculate your child support utilizing the Disso Master program, which is the law as a California State Child Support program.

If you need to modify your child support, a realistic expectation of the amount is very useful information in determining whether to settle or litigate. Time and attorney fees can be exhaustive. Doppelt and Forney, APLC have the disso master program in their office and can calculate your individual child support guideline amount in a free in-person or virtual consultation. This way, you can make an informed decision.