Issues With Child Support or Maintenance (Alimony)
Child support and temporary spousal maintenance are based on a statutory formula. As with any math formula, the calculation is only as valid as the data that goes in. Furthermore, temporary awards tend to become the basis for the court's permanent awards of child support and alimony.
With thousands of dollars at stake for many years to come, it is best to involve a lawyer at an early stage to make sure that support calculations are fair and accurate. I am Charles Messina, a family law attorney in Hamburg with the experience to protect your interests.
I practice in the Greater Buffalo area, throughout Erie, Niagara and Chautauqua counties and in neighboring jurisdictions of Western New York. Contact me today for a free and confidential phone consultation about child support or maintenance in your New York divorce.
Buffalo Child Support Lawyer
New York's Child Support Standards Act (CSSA) provides a fairly simple calculation for the presumptive amount of child support, based on the parents' incomes, FICA deductions and other factors. However, the court can deviate from the formula if the level of support is unfair or inappropriate.
My role is to make sure your best interests are served and that child support is correct at the beginning. For example:
- Shared custody (equal time) can serve as a basis to reduce or cancel out child support obligations.
- Spousal maintenance is tax-deductible to the person paying, but child support is not. This can be a factor in divorce negotiations.
- Parents who are self-employed or paid under the table often understate their income for child support.
- The parent may have hidden sources of income, which can be tracked and traced.
Erie County Alimony Lawyer (Spousal Maintenance)
Some lawyers are not up to speed on recent changes in the temporary maintenance statute. Temporary maintenance is a touchstone for the final order for post-divorce maintenance (commonly called "alimony"). So it is important to get it right the first time, whether you are receiving or paying support. See the temporary maintenance calculator.
The purpose of the new law was to take some of the guesswork out of maintenance, as opposed to the judge's discretion under the old law. This also provides a more reliable basis for out-of-court negotiation of maintenance in the bigger picture of divorce and property division.
I Make Sure Support Is Fair and Accurate
I will closely analyze the reported income and the presumptive amount of support in your New York divorce or paternity case to protect your financial interests. Call my Hamburg office at 716-634-7777 to schedule a consultation, including after hours by appointment. I accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover.
