Emancipation & College Support13 min read
A 50-state statutory guide to when child support terminates (Age 18, 19, or 21), high school graduation extensions, adult disabled child support, and which states compel parents to pay for college.
Enforcement & Arrears13 min read
How federal and state Title IV-D enforcement remedies operate: Income Withholding Orders (IWO), IRS tax refund intercepts, passport revocation at $2,500 arrears, license suspensions, and contempt proceedings.
High-Income & Deviations14 min read
How US family courts calculate child support when parental earnings exceed state statutory caps ($9,200/mo in Texas, $183,000/yr in New York, $400,000/yr in Massachusetts), balancing affluent lifestyle sharing against disguised alimony.
Healthcare & Childcare Add-Ons12 min read
A complete statutory guide to mandatory child support add-ons: how courts calculate incremental health insurance credits, pro-rata daycare shares, and the $250/year uninsured medical threshold.
Income & Forensics14 min read
Why family courts reject IRS Schedule C taxable income for self-employed parents, how judges 'add back' depreciation and personal business write-offs, and how retained corporate earnings are audited.
Modifications & Procedure13 min read
When and how parents can legally petition to increase or decrease court-ordered child support, including the 15%/20% statutory variance thresholds, involuntary job loss rules, and the Bradley Amendment.
Alimony & Spousal Maintenance15 min read
An exhaustive breakdown of statutory spousal maintenance formulas in New York, California, Massachusetts, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Texas—and how alimony orders directly alter child support worksheets.
Legal Foundations11 min read
Understand the critical legal, financial, and tax distinctions between child support and alimony, how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) changed deductibility, and how spousal maintenance impacts child support formulas.
Court Procedure13 min read
A practical guide to completing mandatory family court financial statements (Form FL-150, CJD-301, Statement of Net Worth). What documents to gather, calculation math, and common filing traps.
Legal Foundations11 min read
How family courts treat parents who are voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, how judges calculate earning capacity using wage records and vocational experts, and statutory defenses.
Interstate & Federal Law14 min read
How multi-state child support orders are enforced, modified, and collected under UIFSA, FFCCSOA (28 U.S.C. § 1738B), and the 2007 Hague Convention.