Brooklyn Child Support Attorney

If you need a child support advocate in Brooklyn with experience, compassion, and competence, contact the Law Office of Vivien I. Stark, P.C. Our Brooklyn child support attorneys know the hardships both custodial and non-custodial parents face today due to under and over-calculations of child support. We will investigate your child support case thoroughly to ensure a fair and just child support allotment on behalf of your children.

At the Law Office of Vivien I. Stark, P.C., we handle all areas of child support. Whether your support originated in custody, divorce, or another type of family law proceeding, we can help. Our firm has:

• Decades of experience;
• A client-centered family law practice; and
• Prompt and responsive attorneys who value their clients.

Do not settle for less representation than you deserve; call the Law Office of Vivien I. Stark, P.C. for a consultation today.

How Can a Brooklyn Child Support Attorney Help?

Our Brooklyn divorce attorneys will explain the child support process to you in a way that makes sense, and then go over your rights and responsibilities as a part of the child support system.

Additionally, the child support attorneys at the Law Office of Vivien I. Stark, P.C. can do the following on your behalf:

• Organize your child support payments;
• Clarify your child support orders;
• Enforce any current child support orders;
• Negotiate pending child support orders;
• Defend proposed child support orders;
• Implement new child support orders; and
• Make child support modifications.

Protect your legal right to fair and equal child support payments by contacting our Brooklyn child support lawyers. Our services also include calculating or reviewing a child support calculation for you or advising on an existing agreed deviation and its acceptability by the court.

What Is Child Support in Brooklyn?

Child support is financial support provided by the non-custodial parent for a child’s healthcare, child care, health insurance, and other basic needs. The civil family court in New York requires parents to support their children until the age of twenty-one without court approval of an exceptional circumstance. Child Support Enforcement Units (CSEU) and Support Collection Units (SCU) can be found in every county, and run New York’s child support program.

The following may apply for child support:

• A parent;
• A guardian;
• A caretaker of a child; or
• A child who needs support.

How Is Child Support Calculated in Brooklyn?

New York uses a formula to calculate child support where it combines the parents’ incomes and multiplies that number by a specific percentage per child.

New York considers any of the following as income for child support calculations:

• Workers’ compensation;
• Pensions;
• Disability;
• Unemployment;
• Social Security;
• Veteran’s benefits;
• Fellowships;
• Stipends; and
• Annuities.

Public assistance is not income and does not count as parental income.

For parents with combined incomes under $163,000, the child support formula multiplies the parents’ combined income by:

• 17% for one child;
• 25% for two children;
• 29% for three children;
• 31% for four children; and
• No less than 35% of the combined parental income for five or more children.

For combined incomes over $163,000 annually, the court may:

• Use the same formula as it uses for those incomes under $163,000; or
• Use the same formula for those incomes under $163,000 for the first $163,000 of the parents’ combined income, then decide how much of the remainder to award after considering many factors.

These factors are as follows:

• The financial resources of the child and parents;
• Any physical, emotional, or other special needs of the child;
• The standard of living the child would have enjoyed if not for the divorce;
• Any tax consequences to the parents;
• Non-monetary contributions of the parents to the care and well-being of the child;
• Either parents’ educational needs;
• Gross inequities in parental income; and
• Other children’s needs for whom the non-custodial parent is supporting that are not a party to this action.

Do I Have To Pay Child Support in Brooklyn?

There are a number of circumstances that may make you wonder whether you have to pay child support. Here are some of the most common questions:

• Do I have to pay child support if the other parent gets remarried? Yes.
• Do I have to pay child support if I give up parental rights? No, but you will still owe any remaining payments up until that point.
• Do I have to pay child support if the other parent makes more than me? Yes. The amount will be based on the combined income of the parents using the calculations above.
• Do I have to pay child support if I am not the biological father? Yes, if you are the “presumed father”. This applies if you were married to the biological mother at the time of conception or came forward to support and raise the child in other ways.

Our law firm can answer any additional questions you may have or address special circumstances.

Brooklyn Child Support Modification

If you need to modify your child support plan, our Brooklyn child support lawyers can help you. There are three main reasons you can apply for child support modification in New York state:

1. Substantial change in circumstances. This could include increased costs in raising the child, a change in the parent’s income, changes in custody or visitation rights, a parent becoming disabled or going to prison, and more.
2. Involuntary change in income by at least 15%. If a parent’s income has either increased or decreased by 15% or more and it was involuntary, you qualify.
3. It has been three years since the child support order was made. If three years have passed you can request changes to your child support order.

Once you gather proof of your reason, a child support lawyer will help you file a petition with the court for child support modification. If approved, your child support modification will go into effect starting the day the petition was filed.

Contact a Brooklyn Child Support Attorney

If you want more information about child support factors in New York or have any other child support calculation questions, call the Law Office of Vivien I. Stark, P.C. We can guide you through the calculation process and answer any of your questions as they arise. At the Law Office of Vivien I. Stark, P.C., we strive to make the child support process as stress-free as possible. To ensure the best possible outcome for yourself and your children, meet with one of our experienced New York child support attorneys at your earliest convenience. If you have questions about alimony, reach out to our Brooklyn spousal support lawyers.