Kent County Child Support Attorneys Serving West Michigan

Understanding Michigan Child Support

In Michigan, both parents have a legal duty to support their children. Most parents voluntarily provide support for their children's needs such as shelter, food, and clothing. However, in a divorce proceeding, the court will determine how much each parent must contribute toward child support based upon a statutory formula.

Child support is determined through the Michigan Child Support Guidelines. These guidelines attempt to deliver a unified structure for awarding child support. It considers a number of factors including the following:

• Income of you and your spouse
• Number of children you have to support
• Amount of parenting time awarded to you and your spouse
• Number of overnights the children spend with each parent
• Cost of healthcare
• Cost of daycare

Although child support is determined by the formula in the Michigan Child Support Guidelines, calculation of child support isn't necessarily cut-and-dried. The Family Law Solutions team at Plachta, Murphy & Associates can help make sure that the data used in the calculation is accurate, so that you and your children get a fair result.

Michigan Child Support Modifications

Your circumstances, or those of your ex-spouse or your child, may change in the years following your initial child support order. Needs evolve, people get raises, have health issues, or lose jobs. When these life changes happen, you may need to request a child support modification, or you may oppose a modification requested by your ex-spouse. Whether you are seeking or opposing a modification of child support, Plachta, Murphy & Associates can help you obtain the outcome that best provides for your children without placing an unfair burden on you.

We invite you to contact Plachta, Murphy & Associates to schedule an initial consultation with a member of our Family Law Solutions team. We look forward to answering your questions and serving as your strong advocates.

Family Law Solutions Team: Miles J. Murphy III, Bryan D. Reeder, Vicki A. Poleni, MSW