When couples decide to divorce, there are certain aspects that they need to take into account. One of them is the issue of child support. It is typically believed that child support is paid by the father of the child to the mother to take care of the child and to cover all the expenses that occur in that respect. However, much like child custody not being limited to a mother, being the greater earning spouse or the spouse that the other depends on financially is not limited to a father when it comes to child support.
Both a mother and a father can be the one earning the cash before the couple got a divorce and hence it is entirely possible for a father to get child support from a mother.
Who Is Entitled To Child Support?
Neither a mother nor a father is guaranteed to receive child support at the outset. Who receives the child support will largely depend on the parent who has the primary custody of the child and the income of the parties. So for a father to be in a position to get child support order in their favor from the family law court, they may need to have primary custody of the child and likely also earn less than the mother.
Getting Primary Custody
The first step in getting child support for a father will need them to get primary custody of the child. The family law court will decide on the parent who gets to keep the custody of the child and make the important decisions based on the best interest of the child.
Proving That You Lack The Requisite Finances
It is one thing having the ability to give the child the life that is in their best interest and quite another actually providing it. If you were financially dependent on the child’s mother for the running of the household during the time you were married. You will need to prove that to the court. Once the court is satisfied with this notion they will look to an estimate of the child’s expense, your earning if any and the earning of your spouse and their expenses before passing the child support order based on that.
Gerald A. Maggio is an experienced Orange County divorce and family law attorney and family law attorney located in Irvine, California, serving the Orange County and Riverside areas. Mr. Maggio assists clients with legal issues including divorce, legal separation, divorce mediation, child custody, prenuptial agreements, stepparent adoptions, and other family law issues. Mr. Maggio has practiced law in California since 1999, and founded The Maggio Law Firm in 2005, focusing exclusively on divorce and family law matters.
