New York Child Support Facts

Important Information About Child Custody And Child Support

If you are involved in a divorce settlement with children involved, the most important step that you can take is to contact a Long Island child custody attorney to help guide you through this difficult process. Only a qualified and trained legal professional has the expertise necessary to ensure that your rights and those of your children are adequately protected and enforced.

It is also useful, however, to know a few basic facts about the way that the New York legal system handles child custody and child support. As always, knowledge is the best tool at your disposal to help you make the right decisions.

Child Custody

In the state of New York, any dispute over the custody of a couple’s children will be decided by the court. Often, the custody order is included in the divorce settlement proceedings, though it is in essence a separate matter. In general, there are two basic kinds of custody orders that a court can issue.

Sole custody may be awarded when one parent has proven unwilling or unable to care for a child. Joint custody is awarded when both parents want to care for their child or children, and can only be awarded by the court if both parties agree.

Child Support

This issue only arises once the custodial concern had been dealt with and decided by court order. There is generally an established formula that the court will use to determine child support payment, which is based on several factors. The most important factors are usually the terms of the child custody agreement, which can alter payments based on which parent receives custody or if both are equal, along with the differences between each parent’s income, often determined by the previous years tax returns.

Though sometimes this calculation may appear simple, it is always wise to consult an attorney with the necessary experience to ensure that you have not made any mistakes.

Seek A Long Island Child Support Attorney

Though this information can be useful, it is important that you contact a qualified Long Island child custody lawyer to discuss the details. This is because individual procedures can differ between various courts, and only an experienced attorney such as Sari M. Friedman has the knowledge to help make the most effective use of the legal system.

Please, contact a Long Island child support lawyer right away to discuss your case!