When dealing with custody and child support issues children are frequently the emotional pawns of divorce. Most times parents show their resentments about their spouses by degrading the other parent in front of the children. Another way is by fighting over the children when dealing with custody and child support issues. Children feel scared and guilty when parents do this to one another. It is very important for both parents to keep their emotions intact. This will ensure that both parents will be better equipped to deal with the legal and financial realities of child support. Regardless of divorce, every parent has an obligation to support his or her children.
Some of the factors in deciding upon child support include:
Luckily for children, society has become less tolerant of parents who fail to comply with child support obligations. The federal government requires all state governments to enact laws to enable enforcement of child support orders.
Child support, visitation and custody, are all issues concerning your children that you and your mate may inwardly and outwardly struggle over when deciding what is best for your children. Children should never be used to get back at the other spouse. Remember, divorce is between parents; children are the innocent victims in a divorce and need protection at all cost from the stresses and difficulties of divorce. Your behavior can always do more damage to your children that to anyone else. The best interest of the children should always be in the forefront of all decisions regarding divorce.
Any legal amount of child support is probably less than the actual dollar amount necessary to meet the needs of growing children and their activities. Never allow child support payments to become an excuse for venting frustrations out on your ex-spouse. Parents will need to devise strategies for finding the funds not provided by child support. Financial reality sometimes demands that you recognize the problems caused by rising living expenses and caused by lack of compliance. Always confront any lack of compliance for your children's sake, not for revenge.
There are some questions that you should consider when analyzing the financial consequences of paying or receiving child support:
Most parents find that as they move through the divorce process, their choices about child support are dictated by their own financial abilities and the state's guidelines. Custody has two separate issues: the legal authority to make decisions about the educational, health, medical and welfare needs of child; and physical control over a child. In most states the court will award joint custody. Most parents share custody because in most cases, both parents work outside the home and it just makes sense for joint custody for financial reasons.
Courts consider several factors in determining in the best interest of the child as far as custody is concerned:
Parents will need to take into consideration the following checklist of issues when negotiating child support: