Child Support & Spousal Support

Every Michigan divorce judgment involving children younger than 18 (or 19 ½ if the child is still in high school), includes a provision concerning child support.

Child support is money paid by one parent to the other, to assist in the raising of the children. Parents pay support in proportion to their amount of parenting time and their respective incomes.

In the state of Michigan, a Michigan Child Support Formula is what judges and lawyers use to calculate how much child support a parent will pay. This formula takes into account both parents’ incomes, the number of overnights each parent has with the children, and other details of the parent’s financial situation.

Base child support is intended to be used for general care of the children and for their everyday needs. An additional amount goes toward medical support.

Where applicable, child care expenses factor into the equation. In some counties, the Friend of the Court recalculates the amounts every few years, to take into account evolving family situations and details.

While judgments do not automatically account for the cost of extra-curricular activities, college tuition, summer camp, and other childhood milestones, divorcing parents can include such details in their Judgments. This provides an easy path to follow in the future.

Spousal Support or Alimony

Spousal support is the legal term for alimony, which one spouse pays to the other spouse to help them pay for their living and lifestyle expenses.

Whether or not one spouse receives spousal support depends on several factors.

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Length of marriage
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Age of the spouses
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Each spouse’s educational background, income level, needs & health
child support
Other factors influence spousal support, such as whether one spouse remained at home during the marriage to care for children and has not had a reliable source of income during the marriage.

There are 12 legal factors in total that will be considered when assessing the need for spousal support.

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The past relations and conduct of the parties
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The length of the marriage
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Each party’s ability to work
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The source and amount of property awarded in the divorce
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The ages of the parties
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The ability to pay
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The present situation of the parties
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The needs of the parties
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The health of the parties
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Prior standard of living
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Responsibility for others’ support
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General principles of equity

Kids & Co-parenting Blogs

Interested in learning more about Child Support & Spousal Support?

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