Recalculating Child Support

One of the issues to be decided in mediation is how frequently child support will be recalculated. In New York, child support is calculated pursuant to the Child Support Standards Act (CSSA)

In calculating child support, the CSSA looks at the gross income of the parties, minus standard deductions such as FICA, and then calculates child support based upon how many children the parties have. For example, for one child, the percentage is 17 percent; two children, 25 percent; three, 29 percent; etc.

In New York, child support is meant to cover food, clothing, and shelter. All of the agreed-upon extra expenses and out-of-pocket medical expenses are typically shared pro-rata to the parties’ respective incomes.

For example, if the parties both have incomes of $100,000 per year, their expense-sharing ratio would be 50-50. In another example where the child support payer has an income of $100,000, and the child support payee has an income of $60,000, the expense-sharing ratio would be 60-40 respectively.

So the question is how does child support get recalculated over the years? The New York Domestic Relations Law provides that unless the parties have specifically opted out of the following provisions in a signed stipulation: “The court may modify an order of child support where a) three years have passed since the order was modified or adjusted, or b) there has been a change in either party’s gross income of 15 percent or more since the order was entered or last modified or adjusted.”

As with most things in mediation, the parties can agree to come up with their own recalculation method. In other words, they don’t need to do what the Domestic Relations Law says and may agree upon a calculation method that best suits their needs.

For example, in circumstances where the child support payer has a fluctuating, commission-based salary, the parties may want to recalculate annually. The parties may also want to consider including a cost-of-living increase provision. In cases where there are multiple children, they should consider recalculating as the older children emancipate. It is also a good idea to have a provision in place that triggers a recalculation should there be a significant increase or decrease in either party’s gross income.

In circumstances where the parties have agreed to waive child support and share the expenses of the children, it is not only important to provide details as to what expenses are being shared, it is also wise to provide a recalculation method for the expense-sharing ratio should there be an increase or decrease in income.

The method for recalculation should also be included in the parties’ agreement. For example, the parties may agree to exchange tax returns for the year prior to the recalculation in order to determine incomes. In the event the parties are unable to reach a consensus on child support, in mediation, the parties typically agree to seek the advice of a financial neutral, or return to mediation, prior to seeking court intervention.

For more information about this topic, or why mediation may be right for you, please reach out, I would love to hear from you.