Miami family law attorney blog
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Child Support
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Child support in Florida is calculated using the net incomes of the parents, rather than gross income. This is because net income is the income truly available to a parent for payment of support. Use of gross income was an issue in the case Hunter v. Hunter, 5D2023-1818 (Fla. 5th DCA March 28, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Can you object to having a hearing officer preside over your Florida child support case and instead request that a judge hear the case? This was an issue in Smith v. Smith, 3D24-0687 (Fla. 3d DCA March 5, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
The standard of review for a child support award in a Florida family law case is abuse of discretion. This means the appellate court will review the trial court record to determine if the trial court abused its discretion in how it calculated child support. This was an issue in the case Phara v. Robert, 3D24-1237 (Fla. 3d DCA February 26, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When a party fails to provide a transcript of his or her Florida family law hearing that was the basis of an appeal, the appellate court may not be able to grant relief. This is because the transcript is needed to review what happened at the trial or hearing. The appellate court is restricted to reviewing obvious errors in the order being appealed. This was an issue in the case Aguirre v. Andrukiebich, 3D24-0614 (Fla. 3d DCA February 26. 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Retroactive child support in Florida may be awarded to compensate a parent who was not receiving adequate support from the other parent before a case was initiated. Under Florida law, the court may award retroactive support dating back up to two years prior to the date of filing the petition for support. Such support was an issue in the case Ramirez v. Gregory, 5D2022-2659 (Fla. 5th DCA February 14, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When a parent is ordered to pay child support for multiple children in different cases, the Florida Statutes allow essentially for a credit to be given to that parent in calculating child support. For example, if a parent pays $500 per month for one child by court order, and is subsequently sued for child support for another child, the $500 paid for the first child will be deducted from the parent’s gross income when child support is calculated for the other child. Does this include retroactive child support that is paid? This was an issue in the case Williams v. DOR, 1D2023-3086 (Fla. 1st DCA February 12, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When child support arrears are owed in Florida, the party who owes the arrears may be subject to having his or her money garnished. This includes inheritances. A party who owes arrears who willfully divests himself or herself of the ability to pay the arrears may be subject to the contempt powers of the court. Child support arrears was an issue in the case The Recovery Agents, LLC v. Tutko, 2D2024-0476 (Fla. 2d DCA January 22, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
According to Florida law, “A petition for modification of child support need only allege a substantial change in either the child’s needs or one of the parent’s income.” Vincent v. Vincent, 715 So. 2d 1147, 1148 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). This was an issue in the case Ali v. Sanchez, 4D2024-0114 (Fla. 4th DCA January 15, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When calculating retroactive child support, if there is evidence of the parties’ actual incomes for the retroactive period, the court usually must use the actual income rather than the parties’ current incomes. This is because it may be unfair to apply current incomes if one parent’s income was much lower or much higher during the retroactive period. This was an issue in the case Rouson v. DOR, 2D2024-0107 (Fla. 2d DCA January 3, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Is a Florida family law court required to assign the tax dependency exemption between the parents? If the parents present enough evidence for the court to make this determination, the court can assign the exemption. However in the absence of assignment, the default rule is that the exemption is awarded to the parent who has majority time-sharing. This was an issue in the case Leonard v. Gordon, 4D2024-1309 (Fla. 4th DCA December 11, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Petitioning for modification of child support requires that a parent show a substantial change in circumstances has occurred since the entry of the order establishing support. This change is usually an increase or decrease in income. This was an issue in the case Gonzalez v. Calles, 3D24-0304 (Fla. 3d DCA December 11, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Florida Statute Chp. 409.2563 outlines the procedure for a Florida administrative child support proceeding. Participation in this proceeding addresses only child support unless the parents agree otherwise. If a parent disagrees with the proposed child support amount, according to this chapter, “The parent from whom support is being sought may, within 20 days after the date of mailing or other service of the proposed administrative support order, request a hearing by filing a written request for hearing in a form and manner specified by the department.”
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Does a Florida court have jurisdiction to modify a foreign child support order? This issue is governed by the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA). It has specific provisions that allow (or do not allow) a Florida court to modify a foreign child support decree. This was an issue in the case Bravo v. Johnson, 1D2024-1057 (Fla. 1st DCA November 13, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Florida administrative child support cases are largely handled by mail, but either the custodial parent or the parent who is to pay support can request a hearing during the process, so long as requested by the deadlines imposed by the process. Failure to request a hearing or otherwise cooperate in the proceeding can result in the entry of a child support order with which a parent may not agree. This was an issue in the case Aguilar v. DOR, 6D2023-2846 (Fla. 6th DCA November 1, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When a parent is alleged to be underemployed, for purposes of calculating child support, the parent can be imputed to a higher income. Imputation is a two-step analysis which requires the court to make findings about (1) whether the parent's underemployment was voluntary (absent a finding of fact by the court of physical or mental incapacity or other circumstances over which the parent has no control), and (2) if so, the calculation of imputed income (which involves analysis of the employment potential and probable earnings level of the parent shall be determined based upon his or her recent work history, occupational qualifications, and prevailing earnings level in the community if such information is available. A.A. v. M.A., 2D2023-0676 (Fla. 2d DCA November 1, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
How important is a Florida child support guidelines worksheet? If one is not attached to the final judgment, the judgment is likely to be reversed on appeal. This was an issue in the case Rouson v. DOR, 2D2024-0107 (Fla. 2d DCA October 16, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Must a Florida family law court assign the dependency tax exemption to one parent or the other in conjunction with ordering child support and/or time-sharing? This was an issue in the case Frank v. Frank, 4D2023-1167 (Fla. 4th DCA October 2, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
In an administrative child support proceeding, paternity is not disputed. This means if a father who is requested to participate in this type of proceeding alleges he is not the biological father of the child, this issue will not be considered by the administrative judge. This was an issue in the case Love v. DOR, 3D24-341 (Fla. 3d DCA September 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
What can be done if a parent disagrees with a Florida administrative child support order? Depending on what stage the proceeding is in, there may be a few options. This was an issue in the case Fernandez v. DOR, 3D24-158 (Fla. 3d DCA September 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When imputing income to a parent who is underemployed or unemployed, what factors must a Florida child support court consider? This was an issue in the case Campbell v. Jara, 2D2023-1795 (Fla. 2d DCA August 23, 2024).
