Category: Child Support
Check your court order during spring. Many court orders include a provision requiring parents to give each other some type of notice when they want to spend time with their children during the summer. The common deadline is May 1. And of course, don’t forget to give notice. Even if you have given timely notice, take […]
Divorce With a Special Needs Child When parents of a special needs child separate or divorce, child support can be a complex issue. The cost of caring for a child with special needs is often higher than for a child with no disabilities due to medical expenses, therapy, specialized equipment, and other related costs. In Michigan, child […]
What is a Motion for Temporary Relief? While litigation, like a divorce or child custody dispute, is pending, Michigan Court Rules allow the judge to order temporary relief. There are limits to what the judge may order. For example, the judge may not order a final property division. Spouses or parents often need a Temporary Order to establish: A […]
Child support is based on a specific formula. Either your attorney, the Friend of the Court, or a judge will calculate the child support amount. When a parent has limited or no income, they are surprised when they still have to pay support. For example, a stay-at-home mom with no income may still be ordered to pay […]
Discovery When you have a dispute, how do you really prove your case to the judge? For example, your child tells you that the other parent is at work during their parenting time, so how do you prove that? You believe that your spouse earns a lot more money and should be paying a lot more in support. How […]
The federal government recently sent another round of stimulus checks to many families across the country to help ease some of the financial burdens of the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, Tax Day (now pushed back a month) is looming. What does all of this mean for parents waiting on overdue child support payments and those who owe […]
In Michigan, child support orders are often set based on several factors that include the child’s needs and parents’ ability to pay. Although Detroit Pistons star Blake Griffin makes roughly $35 million a year, he has poured cold water on claims he’s shelling out $258,000 per month in child support. Sports blog Sportscasting.com recently ran […]
Recently I read an interesting article of a young man who knew he was conceived with the assistance of an anonymous donor, and after a home genetic test learned that he had 32 half siblings. There are similar stories online such as an anonymous donor who now invites his many, many donor children to a lake […]
Mom and daughter seemingly enjoying their collected child support in a MSN news article A recent news article claimed that “[m]other, 73, wins child support for her 52-year-old daughter after her ‘deadbeat ex’ who fled to Canada when their child was just three years old finally returns to the US”. The article shows happy mom with daughter lounging […]
Michigan legislators recently introduced a package of nine bills to overhaul the state’s cash bail system, including for people who have child support arrears. Proponents of the legislation and the lawmakers introducing the legislation argue that the current law, which often requires people charged with a crime to put up significant amounts of cash if they want […]