Modification of Custody Agreement
Understanding the common misconceptions.
There are many misconceptions regarding whether or not custodial agreements can be modified. The fact of the matter is that a custody agreement is not that much different than other agreements or issues that arise in Domestic Relations Law in New York. Courts do their best to encourage parties in custody disputes to reach their own agreement rather than rendering a ruling which dictates custody. In fact, courts will do their best to uphold custody agreements as long as circumstances allow.
Certain standards are necessary for modification.
It may be said that the courts will initially view a case with the presumption that the agreement should be upheld. This should not be interpreted to mean that the agreement will be upheld in every case. The best interests of the child, a change in circumstances, and overall well being of the children will always be considered by the court. In order to succeed in modifying a custody agreement, it would be wise to focus your arguments in these areas.
Long Island Divorce Attorney
If you are unhappy with a custody agreement and need legal assistance in attempting to modify it, call the Law Firm of Vaughn, Weber & Prakope, PLLC at (516) 858-2620 to speak to a Family Law Attorney today!
New York Child Support Standards.
Child support in New York is governed by the New York Child Support Standards Act, Domestic Relations Law 240 Section 1-b and Family Court Act 413 (identical statutes). The Act assigns to courts a standard for allocating child support obligations between divorced parents. The purpose of the Act is to ensure that children of divorced parents receive the same standard of living they would have enjoyed had their parents remained together, while at the same time dividing financial obligations fairly.
Generally, the Act directs courts to take the following steps:
(1) Determine the combined total income of the parents.
Courts are directed to look at each parent’s gross income, but may make certain deductions or consider additional income sources or assets where appropriate. Additionally, if a court believes that a parent is misrepresenting income, it may assign a number it considers to represent the actual income of the parent.
(2) Calculate the children’s share of the parents’ combined total income.
Usually the court will determine the child or children’s expenses to be a statutorily assigned percentage of the parents’ total income, but some exceptions may be made in high-income cases.
(3) Assign a pro-rata share of the child/children’s expenses.
Generally, this means that each parent’s obligation to the child/children’s expenses will be in proportion to each parent’s share of the total combined income. Again, a court may assign an amount greater than the statutorily assigned proportion in high-income cases.
High income exceptions may be made at any step in this process, and a court may assign add-on expenses such a child care, medical expenses, or tuition. Tax issues also often arise in determining child support obligations.
As always, if you are have any questions regarding child support or you are having an issue with child support, please call (516) 858-2620 to speak with a Family Law Attorney today!
*Contributions of research and preparation for this blog were made by Jason Bernard Mays, J.D. (awaiting admission in NYS)
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