Child Support FAQ

Issues such as joint custody can get muddled depending on the family dynamic and who is involved. Child support lawyers are one of your best resources when dealing with these kinds of cases and here are their top tips and insight on the matter.

What Exactly Does Joint Custody in North Carolina Law Entail?

If the court judge makes this declaration, it means that both parents will share custody of the children. 

This decision is usually made while keeping in mind the input of the parents. Joint physical custody requires the parents to come to an agreement on how the children will divide their time between the two of them. In the case of joint legal custody, both parents are allowed to make important decisions for the children, such as medical treatment.

The Role of Child Support

In the case of joint custody, one parent will still owe the other child support in order to cover necessities as well as things such as schooling. It is based on several factors such as who the children spend more time with and which parent has a higher income. Just because both parents have custody, that doesn’t cancel out the obligations of making support payments for the children.

Divorce is messy enough but if one parent refuses to pay child support, things can get even more stressful. The other parent may be tempted to prevent his or her former partner from visiting the children, but is this actually legal?

Visitation Rights Aren’t Linked to Child Support

At least, the two aren’t interdependent but instead stand legally independent of each other. While this can be frustrating for parents who aren't receiving this support money, it doesn’t give them the right to revoke parent-child visits. It’s a serious issue if support payments aren’t being made, of course, but this is a separate subject from visitation suspension. Besides, keeping children away from their parent can do more harm to their psychological and emotional welfare.

Dealing with Missed Payments

So, what to do if the parent isn’t paying child support? If it’s possible, talk to your ex to find out why he or she is not paying. The two of you might be able to come to some kind of payment agreement if he or she is struggling to supply the funds. If he or she is flat-out refusing to pay, additional court action may be taken. Keep in mind that going back to court may end up costing you more than the support payment you’re due.

Going through a divorce can be an overwhelming process and it doesn’t help that different states have their own rules and regulations. Here is a clear breakdown of how child support payments work in North Carolina. Hopefully, these guidelines make it clearer how these payments are determined. 

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