SERVING BURTON, MI & SURROUNDING AREAS
Ensuring fair financial support arrangements that protect your child’s needs and your financial stability. Get clear guidance and strong legal advocacy tailored to your situation.
Consultations are confidential and private.
At the Law Office of Patrick L. Chatterton, we provide strategic and compassionate legal representation in child support matters throughout Burton and surrounding Michigan communities.
We handle child support matters arising from divorce, custody cases, paternity actions, and post-judgment disputes.
We work to ensure child support calculations are fair, accurate, and reflective of your true financial circumstances.
Support orders are designed to protect the well-being of your child while maintaining fairness between parents.
While Michigan child support is governed by statutory guidelines, deviations may apply in complex cases such as joint or shared custody arrangements.
Parents are often faced with the issue of child support or maintenance during divorce proceedings or upon termination of relationships that never contemplated marriage. In Michigan, the court will generally order the non-custodial parent to provide support for a child living with the other parent. The financial obligation to support a child is independent of parental rights, such as whether or not they have custody or visitation rights with respect to those children.
The Michigan courts are responsible for determining the amount of support a parent must provide. The support order may be part of an interim, temporary, permanent, or modified court order in a divorce, paternity action, child custody action, or separate child support action.
“Child support arrangements should promote stability, fairness, and the best interests of your child.”
There are three types of support a court may award, including child support, medical support, and childcare support. In Michigan, child support is governed by statutory law, and courts will use guidelines that are based on monthly net income. In situations in which the determination of child support may not fit the formula, such as joint physical custody, shared custody, or split custody, the courts may decide not to use the income guidelines to determine the amount of child support.
In addition, Michigan courts will require one parent to obtain or maintain health care coverage for the child or to pay medical expenses not covered by insurance. Courts will also make a determination as to childcare support that allows a parent to look for employment, retain paid employment, or to enroll in and attend an educational program that will improve employment opportunities.
While the law is governed by statute, it is important to have an attorney assist you through the process to protect your financial wellbeing and the best interests of your child. Contact our Burton, MI law firm today to schedule a confidential consultation to discuss your situation.
