Child support is often among the most contentious issues in Maryland custody disputes. Everyone involved has an opinion of how much child support their children need or that they can afford but, unless the parties can reach an agreement within relatively narrow parameters, a Judge will decide after hearing from both sides.
In the vast majority of cases, child support is calculated using a formula prescribed by statute. This formula takes multiple, but limited, factors into account. The formula disregards the amount of your or the other parent’s take-home pay and, with a few exceptions, disregards most of your living expenses.
Maryland’s Child Support Formula
Maryland’s Child Support Guidelines utilize an income shares model to calculate a presumptively correct amount of child support. This model seeks to ensure that children receive the same proportion of parental income and, therefore, a similar standard of living that they would have had if the family were still living together. The formula takes into account several factors, including:
- Each parent’s “actual monthly income,” including wages, bonuses, Social Security benefits, and alimony. Temporary cash assistance, food stamps, SSI, and other benefits from means-tested public assistance programs will not be included.
- Each parent’s “adjusted actual income,” which is the actual monthly income minus any pre-existing court-ordered child support or alimony a parent is already paying.
- Work-related child carechildcare expenses for childcare needed to take care of the children before and after work.
- Premiums for medical insurance, dental insurance, prescription drug coverage, and vision insurance attributable to the child or children being on a parent’s policy.
- Extraordinary medical expenses which are uninsured costs for medical treatment in excess of $250 in any calendar year.
The state has a Maryland child support calculator you can use to get a general idea of what you might pay, given the relevant factors above and possible custody arrangements. In a minority of guidelines cases – that is, cases where the combined gross monthly income of the parties is equal to or less than $30,000 per month – Judges can and do deviate downwards from the guidelines-recommended amount if applying the formula strictly would lead to unjust or inappropriate outcomes. However, “unjust” isn’t what you might think it is. Given how reluctant Judges are to deviate downwards from the guidelines, deciding whether or not it’s even worth fighting for a downward deviation from the guidelines requires the assistance of counsel experienced in handling child support cases.
How Does the Amount of Time I Have My Kids Impact Child Support?
How many nights the child or children spend with each parent also plays a significant role in determining the amount of child support. For example, shared physical custody—where a child spends at least 25% of their overnights with each parent— uses a different calculation than primary physical custody arrangements, where one parent has more than 75% of the overnights in a year. The law that applies to cases filed on or after October 1, 2020, also requires an adjustment to the amount of support when one parent has 25% to 30% of overnights.
Does the Guidelines Calculation Apply to All Cases?
In cases where parents’ combined monthly income exceeds $30,000, Maryland’s Child Support Guidelines do not apply. Instead, the court assesses the unique needs of the child or children involved and the overall financial picture of both parents. These higher-income cases are subject to a more detailed examination of the family’s financial circumstances.
The court may consider factors such as the cost of private school or extracurricular activities. This approach allows for flexibility and a case-by-case determination instead of the more uniform outcome in most guidelines cases. It also means you need an experienced lawyer to present the financial information to the Judge in an organized manner along with information about what the financial arrangements impacting the children have historically been.
Skillfully Navigate Your Maryland Divorce and Custody Case
Divorce is a major disruption in family life and the time and costs associated with raising your children in two separate households are a major element of that. So, it is important to be involved in the process of restructuring your life and that of your children.
As a Maryland attorney who has spent most of his career handling family law matters, I can steer you through the legal complexities of custody, child support, and divorce. We can strategize about the best approach to protecting both your children and your financial interests to the greatest extent possible under the specific circumstances of your case. Settlement negotiations, either with or without a mediator, are almost always a part of the strategy in family law cases because good settlements – although they usually require both parties to compromise – allow the parties more control and avoids the sometimes unpleasant surprise that a ruling from a Judge can be.
Book a consultation with Navigate Law Firm to learn more about how I can help you navigate through the storm that either a breakup of an unmarried couple with children or a divorce with children can be. Even divorces among couples without minor children, especially in longer marriages, can involve tricky issues such as alimony and the division of marital property. Seek counsel as early in the process as possible, ideally, before anyone files anything in court.
