North Carolina Divorce Lawyers Blog

Articles Posted in Child Support

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Child support is an important aspect of providing for the needs of a child after a separation or divorce. It is essential for both parents to contribute to the financial needs of the child, and the state of North Carolina has established guidelines for determining the amount of child support to be paid. The calculation of child support is based on several factors, chief among them is the parent’s income, earnings, and relative ability to pay.  Continue reading →

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In most cases here in North Carolina, child support has been reduced to an equation based upon guidelines that have been approved by the state. It is much like filing taxes—there are inputs for each parent’s income, the number of children, and the custodial schedule. Schedules are then used to determine the obligation for support. There may be certain line items that add or subtract from one parent’s obligation. In some circumstances, the court (or a parent) may see fit to depart from the guidelines, in which case a separate set of standards is used to calculate support; this is called deviation. In these cases, the actual expenses for the children are factors in determining the support obligation. Actual expenses are not typically part of the formula in guideline cases. However, there exists one category in the guidelines that does account for expenses. It is called extraordinary expenses. Continue reading →

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As the son of President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden has been under intense scrutiny for his personal and professional life. One aspect of his life that has received a lot of attention is his child support payments.

Hunter Biden has fathered five children with three different women. His first child was born in 1993 with his ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle. The couple divorced in 2017, and Hunter was ordered to pay $37,000 per month in child support and alimony. Continue reading →

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LIMERICK V. ROJO-LIMERICK, 2023-NCCOA-________ (2023). 

  1. Facts:  Plaintiff and Defendant are parents of a minor child. In August of 2020, Plaintiff filed for divorce from bed and board, child custody and child support, and attorney fees. Defendant counterclaimed for custody, child support, equitable distribution, alimony, and attorney fees. Defendant then voluntarily dismissed his counterclaims for equitable distribution, postseparation support, alimony, and attorney fees. However, Defendant’s claims for custody and child support remained open. Plaintiff then dismissed his claims except for child custody and child support. The trial court eventually entered into a consent order for permanent child custody, temporary child support, and attorney fees. The remaining issues for child support and fees were heard in November of 2021. Plaintiff’s claim for fees was granted. Defendant appealed. 

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Price v. Price, 2022-NCCOA-928 (unpublished).

Facts: In April of 2020, Mother filed a motion to modify child support. A hearing on that motion was eventually calendared for November of 2020.

In the meantime, Father had fired his attorney. Father did not show up for the modification hearing, and the trial court proceeded without him. Mother introduced evidence of Father’s income by producing in court his 2019 W2 showing a gross income of $251,918.59. Mother also produced records that Father was receiving $1500 a week in disability insurance between October of 2019 and April 2020 which was thought to be in addition to his income. Mother’s income was only $685.44 a week from her work.

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BARHAM V. BARHAM, 2022-NCCOA-798 (unpublished).

Facts: Plaintiff and Defendant are parents of eight children. At this time, all eight children have attained the age of majority (18). There have been numerous child support orders in their case for their children. When their seventh child graduated from high school and turned 18, a motion to modify was filed and a consent order was entered that required Plaintiff to pay $716 a month for support for the final eighth child. Plaintiff instead paid 1 cent per pay period. Plaintiff also filed a motion seeking to establish credit for overpayment of child support, alleging that he overpaid from 2013-2019 by $12,486.95, and that overpayment should be applied to the prospective award from the modification. Defendant filed for contempt for nonpayment of support. Trial court found Plaintiff in contempt, he appeals. Continue reading →

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WINEBARGER v. STEEN, 2022-NCCOA-739.

Facts: Mother and Father split and had a case with child support. Mother requested to deviate from the child support guidelines. On 10 June 2021, the trial court imposed a $290.38 child support obligation on Father, consistent with the child support guidelines. No findings or conclusions of law were made concerning Mother’s income and expenses. No child support worksheet was attached, although one was referenced in the Order. Father’s income was found to be $52,781.05, even though the Order also found that Father was totaling $63,975.05 in income earlier in the Order. No explanation was given for the discrepancy. Among sources of income, $4,967 was included as part of a Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) Loan. Father appealed. Continue reading →

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Cash v. Cash, 2022-NCCOA-706.

Facts: Mother and father were set for a trial on modification of child support. Five days before the trial date, father filed and served an amended financial standing affidavit that reported that his current income was $0 because he was laid off from his employment as a masonry supervisor. At the hearing, mother’s attorney argued that father had not supplied any updated income information. Father testified that he started a new masonry business and was not seeking any other employment, instead focusing on his business. He testified to his business income and expenses. Mother asked father if he provided any of his business financial information before the hearing, and father testified that he did not. Father then called his former boss to testify that father had been laid off because of salary, and that he was the most recently hired supervisor. Boss also testified that he did not offer father a different position with a reduced salary because Boss knew father and knew that father would not accept the job. The trial court found that father was not credible and acted in bad faith to deliberately suppress his income to avoid the child support obligation. The trial court imputed income to father, and father appeals. Continue reading →

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Divorce is difficult, and even more so with children involved. It can be especially difficult when the children have unique needs. The stresses of divorce can have an increased impact on these children, and their special needs can have a major impact on custody and child support. As a parent, you are in the best position to know what your child needs, and it is your job to show the court what those needs are and to be honest with yourself about your ability to meet those needs. Continue reading →

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How often have you heard someone claim their grandmother was Native American? What about Italian? More people around the world claim to be Irish than there are people in all of Ireland! The lure of knowing where you come from has led to an explosion in commercial testing services like 23 & Me. As technology has advanced and databases of genetic profiles have grown, so has the information that those commercial genetic tests can provide. This includes health information and wide nets of genetic relatives you may have never known about. Everyone is familiar with genetic testing in custody and child support cases, but learning one’s genetic parentage can lead to a host of issues beyond custody and child support. Continue reading →