Santa Monica Child Support Attorney

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Children have the right to monetary support from both parents in Santa Monica, California. Whether you are a custodial parent seeking support for your child or require a modification of your current child support payment, the Santa Monica child support lawyers at Fernandez & Karney have the experience to help you accomplish your legal goals.

At Fernandez & Karney, our child support attorneys are:

Current on California’s evolving family and child support laws;
Dedicated to defending and protecting your interests; and
Focused and efficient when handling child support matters.

Meet with a child support professional and plan a case strategy today. Your consultation is completely confidential at Fernandez & Karney.

How Our Santa Monica Child Support Attorneys Can Help

The Santa Monica child support attorneys at Fernandez & Karney can handle your child support issue as a stand-alone case or as part of a more extensive matter like a divorce, child custody, guardianship, or paternity case. While we are excellent negotiators and will advocate for you in any environment, we understand that not every outcome can be achieved outside of courtroom litigation.

Fernandez & Karney provides excellent legal representation both inside and outside of the courtroom and can do the following:

Ensure you understand the impact of California’s child support laws on you and your family
Stand beside you from start to finish of your entire case
Organize your support payments
Enforce any past-due support payments
Calculate anticipated support payments
Negotiate a new support payment with your co-parent
Analyze your support case for deviations or add-ons
Litigate your case at trial

Protect your rights and those of your child by seeking assistance today. You deserve a complete and accurate child support analysis and computation. Learn more by speaking with a Santa Monica family law attorney at Fernandez & Karney.

Child Support Determinations in Santa Monica

Child support can be agreed upon by parents or ordered by the court. Agreements made by parents must be in the best interests of the child; otherwise, the court will not sign off on the plan.

The court makes child support determinations based on the best interests of the child along with several statutory factors found in California Family Code 4055.

These include the following:

Each parent’s gross monthly income
The amount of time each parent spends with the child
Mandatory union dues and retirement account deductions
Financial disparities between the custodial and non-custodial homes
The ability of each parent to pay for the children’s support
The number of children from the marriage or relationship
The tax filing status of each parent
Child support obligations from other relationships
Healthcare expenses and insurance premiums
The cost of daycare
Travel expenses for visitation
Educational expenses
Any special needs the child has

Child support payments are made monthly by the non-custodial parent to the custodial parent (the parent with whom the child primarily resides).

When Does Child Support End in Santa Monica?

Santa Monica, California, requires parents to pay child support until a child is eighteen. Payments must continue until nineteen if a child is still in high school. Parents may also make alternative arrangements for child support to continue beyond nineteen for reasons such as higher education or special needs.

Modification of Child Support in Santa Monica

There must be a significant change in circumstances for a parent to request and be granted a child support modification in Santa Monica, California.

Possible reasons for a child support modification include:

A job loss
A drastic change in income
Incarceration of a parent
A substantial increase or decrease in visitation time

The court will make its decision to modify the child support order or deny the modification according to the best interests of the child.

Contact an Experienced Santa Monica Child Support Attorney

If you are a parent in Santa Monica, California, who needs strong, successful legal representation in child support or other family law matter, look no further than Fernandez & Karney. Our experienced and dependable Santa Monica child support attorneys will work tirelessly to further your legal interests and meet your expectations.

Contact Fernandez & Karney in Santa Monica to discuss our approach to child support cases and have your most pressing legal questions answered.