Does Remarriage Affect Child Support in Florida?

In Florida, parents have a legal obligation to support their children financially. That is why parents are ordered to pay child support after they divorce. The “Income Shares Model” is used in Florida when calculating child support. The court uses this method to calculate a basic support obligation. Once the basic child support obligation has been calculated, each parent is responsible for a share of the obligation in proportion to their income. Child support is a combination of the number of overnights together with the consideration of each party’s income. Even a party with more timesharing can end up paying child support if the incomes warrant it..

One question a lot of divorcing and divorced parents ask is, “Does remarriage affect child support?” So, does it? If you are wondering whether remarriage affects child support in Florida, you should schedule a consultation with a qualified family lawyer. But generally, remarriage, by itself, doesn’t affect child support in Florida. What can affect child support are some of the factors a remarriage brings about. So, in other words, remarriage can have an indirect impact on child support in Florida.

How Can Remarriage Indirectly Affect Child Support in Florida?

There are only rare instances where a remarriage would affect child support. One example might be that a former spouse voluntarily quits a job and then asks for more child support because he or she no longer needs to work because of the remarriage. That request will be denied and income will be imputed to that parent because a new marriage alone is never a reason to reduce or terminate child support because to quit a job for a remarriage is a voluntary act.

One example that might apply is if the former spouse has a child from the subsequent relationship and the child has special needs and needs more resources than the parent could have reasonably expected. In such a case, the court may consider lowering child support payments.

Likewise, if there is a subsequent divorce, or prior divorce where child support obligations increased, then these obligations will be considered when recalculating child support calculations in a modification case.

There may be other unique situations where an experienced attorney can help with advice on child support and whether a reduction or increase is proper

Contact a Jacksonville Child Support Lawyer

If you need more information or legal help, contact our experienced Jacksonville child support lawyers at The Lasky Law Firm.