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Child Support
Most parents want what is best for their children and have no problems stating that they are happy to provide for their needs. However, arriving at an amount for child support can be a challenge even for well intentioned parents. The matter is indeed serious, failure to meet child support obligations is a crime; fall far enough behind and you'll find yourself a convicted felon!
The goal of a child support order is to ensure a consistency for the parties' children and the provision of their reasonable and customary needs. Kentucky has legislated child support guidelines that are intended to take the guesswork out of computing the amount of support that a party will pay. Generally the party who has the children the majority of the time is entitled to support from the other parent. In cases where there is a significant income disparity support may be awarded even if the parents share time and expenses equally.
There are relatively few factors that are considered in the Kentucky child support calculation; Gross Income, the cost of Health Insurance; the cost of Day Care; and the Medical Expenses related to the children. Parenting time may have an impact, as will any other issue where the court determines it is fair to deviate from the guidelines.
Orders for support may be retroactively dated often resulting in unexpected arrearages on the day that the child support order is signed. Protracted child support litigation can be costly and parties are well advised to obtain the advice of counsel before engaging in child support litigation. With help parents are often able to make arrangements that resolve the matter quickly and do not surprise either party with unexpected orders.