Palo Alto Child Support Lawyer

Child support can be a difficult legal issue, whether the issue at hand is setting up initial child support orders or requesting to modify an existing child support arrangement. Both parents have a desire to provide for their children while also maintaining their own separate households.

If you are facing a child support matter, the child support attorneys at Moradi Saslaw are available to assist you. Our attorneys are skilled at protecting your legal rights throughout the child support process and are:

• Highly experienced in all areas of child support laws and calculations, including deviations;
• Honest and reliable when giving advice and counsel regarding your legal standing; and
• Determined to place you in the best possible legal and financial position both now and in the foreseeable future.

Contact the Palo Alto office of Moradi Saslaw today to schedule a confidential appointment with child support professional. We will help you navigate California’s child support process in the most efficient manner possible.

Let Our Palo Alto Child Support Attorneys Help You

At Moradi Saslaw, our child support attorneys will work alongside you to ensure you know and understand California’s child support guidelines and how California computes child support. Our Palo Alto family law lawyers will help you find creative ways to maximize your resources to benefit your children.

Additionally, our attorneys will:

• Use our experience to advise you regarding the court’s possible treatment of your case;
• Search for assets and file liens against a non-paying parent;
• Review any current support orders to determine if a modification is warranted;
• File for a modification of child support where the situation merits an increase or a decrease in the child support payment;
• Negotiate and settle your case; or
• Litigate your case before the court.

To discuss the many child support services offered by Moradi Saslaw, contact us in Palo Alto. We will gladly meet with you to examine your case in detail.

California’s Child Support Guideline

In California, child support is based on a guideline that includes a complex mathematical formula that considers the following:

• The parents’ incomes;
• The amount of time each parent spends with the child; and
• Any tax deductions that are available to either parent.

Judges are required to follow the guideline and its mathematical formula to ensure there is a minimum level of child support for any child and uniformity in child support calculation. Judges may only deviate from the guideline in limited situations.

Deviations from the Guideline

In circumstances where the guideline would not be fair or reasonable, a judge may award a greater or lesser amount of child support. These include factors like:

• The parent being ordered to pay child support has an extraordinarily high income, and the amount determined under the formula would exceed the needs of the children;
• A parent is not contributing to the needs of the children at a level commensurate with that parent’s custodial time;
• Both parents have substantially equal time with the children, and one parent has a much lower or higher percentage of income used for housing than the other parent; and
• The children have special medical or other needs that could require child support greater than the formula amount.

Add-Ons to Child Support

In addition to the basic child support guideline amount, there are also mandatory add-ons to child support that a parent can be ordered to pay for the benefit of the children. These are as follows:

1. Child care costs related to employment or reasonably necessary education or training for employment skills; and
2. The reasonable uninsured health care costs for the children.

Unless specified by the judge, child support add-ons are shared by the parents equally.

Contact an Experienced Palo Alto Child Support Attorney

Before preparing or filing any documents regarding child support, it is in your best interest to discuss your case with an experienced Palo Alto, child support attorney like those at Moradi Saslaw. Some deviations and add-ons may significantly affect your child support amount.

Whether your child support case is a stand-alone matter or part of a larger divorce or custody case, Moradi Saslaw stands ready with the knowledge and resources to fight for you. Contact us today.