Mokena, Illinois Child Support Lawyer

Attorneys Assisting Divorcing Parents With Child-Related Expenses in New Lenox and Will County

When you get a divorce and children are involved, child-related issues are going to be very high on your list of important concerns. As you work to ensure that your children will have the financial resources they need, it may feel like you are struggling to overcome an avalanche of legal issues, financial problems, and emotional distress. By working with a skilled attorney, you can help alleviate some of these concerns and ensure that your children will be provided for.

At Wakenight & Associates, P.C., our lawyers have a combined total of over 95 years of legal experience, and we have represented clients in a wide variety of family law cases. We will work with you to ensure that child support is calculated correctly and that your children's expenses will be addressed fairly.

Child Support in Illinois Divorce Cases

In the 21st century, marriage is usually an equal partnership, with both spouses earning an income and contributing toward raising their children. In recent years, Illinois laws regarding child support have been updated to reflect the nature of modern families and take the income earned by both parents into consideration.

Under the current laws, child support is based on the amount parents would have been expected to spend on their children if they had remained married. Child support obligations are determined using tables created by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, and this "basic support obligation" is the amount that corresponds with the combined net income earned by the parents and the number of children they share.

Each parent is responsible for a portion of the basic support obligation that is based on the percentage of the combined income that they earn. The non-residential parent (that is, the parent with a minority of the parenting time) will typically pay their portion of the obligation to the residential parent. For example, if Parent A earns 75% of the parents' combined income, and the children live with Parent B the majority of the time, Parent A will pay 75% of the basic child support obligation to Parent B.

Additional Expenses and Considerations

While the process described above will be used in many divorce cases, some additional calculations may be necessary if children spend equal or near-equal amounts of time with each parent. If children have 146 or more overnight stays with each parent per year (that is, if they stay with each parent at least 40% of the time), the amount of each parent's child support obligation will be adjusted based on their percentage of parenting time.

In addition to the basic child support obligation, parents may be required to contribute toward other expenses for children, including health insurance premiums, childcare costs, school books and supplies, and extracurricular activities. As with the basic child support obligation, these costs will typically be divided between parents based on each parent's percentage of the combined income. Parents may also be required to contribute toward children's college expenses, with the amount of their obligations being based on the costs of tuition, room, and board at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign during the same academic year.

Contact an Orland Park Child Support Lawyer

Your children deserve to have the financial support that will meet their needs after your divorce. Our attorneys can help you ensure that child support is calculated correctly, and if necessary, we can assist with the enforcement of child support orders. Contact us by calling 815-727-6144 today to schedule your complimentary consultation. We serve clients in Tinley Park, Orland Hills, Oak Forest, Homer Glen, Lockport, Joliet, and Will County.