New Jersey Child Support Overview

Children are the innocent victims of divorce. They become the center of battles over child custody, support, and visitation and face losing the only lifestyle that they’ve ever known, often winding up being penalized both emotionally and financially. And while good parenting and a parenting plan can help ease the emotional burden and can’t necessarily be set forth in any guideline, in order to ease the financial impact, the State of New Jersey has created a series of Child Support Guidelines which were developed to “provide the court with economic information to assist in the establishment and modification of fair and adequate child support awards.”

For couples engaging in traditional divorce mediation, Child Support award calculations are performed and the subject matter is discussed along with the other three major mediation subject areas of (1) Equitable Distribution, (2) Spousal Support (Alimony) and (3) Parenting Plans.

For couples who are already divorced and simply seeking to adjust their New Jersey Child Support amounts by engaging in post divorce parent coordination, the scope of the conversation will be much more focused. However even when simply re-calculating the NJ Child Support awards, both the current parenting plan as well as the current spousal support or alimony and current income figures will be required in order to have a productive conversation.

In both pre and post divorce cases, the children’s actual expenses (which will be outlined in a budget prepared by the parties) will serve as the basis for discussion. After the budges are prepared and all other appropriate data is gathered, the divorce mediator will use a special software program as well as information received during the course of mediation in order to help the couple determine what the guidelines say is an appropriate child support award. As every family’s circumstances are unique, it is always best to consult with a NJ mediator who can help you and your spouse understand the child support guidelines in detail and determine what an appropriate amount of child support would be within the scope of your child custody arrangement. With that in mind, please note this document is intended to give a general overview of the subject matter and not to provide any specific legal advice.

Should you have any specific questions regarding child support in your particular situation, please contact us to set up a consultation for you and your spouse either via telephone or in one of our many convenient Northern or Central New Jersey locations where we will discuss the specifics of your case and help you understand the potential options and solutions that lie ahead for each of you and your children.