Domestic violence is far more common than we know. It is a problem that affects people regardless of race, gender, sexuality or socioeconomic status. If you or someone you love is being abused, it is important to come forward to seek help.
What is Domestic Violence? Domestic violence is causing, or attempting to cause, bodily injury to the victim. It can also be placing the victim in fear of imminent, serious bodily injury. This may include continued harassment if it causes severe emotional distress. It is important to remember that domestic violence can only occur between people who have a current or former relationship. This includes spouses, household members, parent/ child or boyfriend/ girlfriend. What to do if you are a victim of domestic violence Your safety is the biggest priority—get yourself to safety and call 911. If you do not have a safe place, you can seek help at a shelter. From there, you have the option of seeking a restraining order and/ or filing criminal charges. Criminal charges are recommended because the criminal system has some procedures in place that the civil system does not, like probation and violent offender programs. If the abuser is found guilty at trial, then the terms and conditions of his or her sentence depend on various factors including what crimes the abuser has committed against you and prior offenses How does domestic violence effect custody and child support? It is rare for those issues to be handled in the civil domestic violence process of getting a restraining order. Many judges prefer that issues of child support and custody be handled in a separate action. You will need to file a separate complaint seeking custody and child support. What about alimony and property division? The judge in your domestic violence can only deal with these issues on a very limited basis, such as addressing temporary distribution of vehicles and the home. Many judges prefer that these issues be handled in a separate action. You will need to file a separate complaint alimony and equitable division. Domestic violence proceedings can be confusing and time consuming, especially when dealing with other family law issues. Contact Adkins Law today to set up a consultation and decide your next steps.
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North Carolina state law requires that child support be determined by a formula through the North Carolina Child Support Guidelines. These guidelines assume that the child should receive a proportional amount of each parent’s monthly income as if they lived together. Thee guidelines are intended to meet the needs of the children, while remaining fair to both parties.
Child support orders specify the amount of money that a non-custodial parent must pay. The formula used to calculate the amount of support necessary involves two steps.
These guidelines also consider other biological children each party may have, as well as child care costs and medical insurance costs for the child(ren) in the order. You should also know that:
How does the process work? The non-custodial parents are served with a Civil Summons and Complaint. They can respond to these documents in one of the following ways:
If the non-custodial parent does not respond or appear in court, the court will accept the information contained in the Complaint to Establish Support as true and will issue an order to pay child support based on that information. It is always easier for everyone if both parties work together to establish a child support order. By reaching an agreement that is based on the North Carolina Child Support Guidelines, a court hearing is not required. Applying for Child Support with Child Support Enforcement (CSE): Here is What you Need to Know6/17/2017 The Mecklenburg County Office of Child Support Enforcement (CSE) works to ensure that both parties are responsible for the financial support of their children. The CSE offers services regardless of income.
What services are provided by CSE?
It is recommended that you contact a private attorney to discuss concerns that may seem similar to child support, such as custody, visitation, or spousal support. In order to receive services from the CSE, you must complete an application. The application is available online at ChildSupportEZapply.com. What do I need to apply for these services?
Once you have completed all sections and submitted all required documents, the CSE will review your application and decide the appropriate course of action. It is important to understand that by submitting an application to the CSE, you are agreeing to respond to all requests for further information, appear for interviews and court hearing, submit to any paternity testing, notify the office of any changes in your status, remain cooperative, and stay involved in your case through the entire process. In accordance with the federal Child Support Enforcement Act, each state has developed specific guidelines to calculate a range of child support to be paid, based on the parents’ respective incomes and expenses. Each state’s guidelines vary considerably, meaning that in virtually identical situations, the child support ordered in one state may be far more or less than that ordered in another state. Judges in some states are allowed a considerable amount of leeway in setting the actual amount, while other states have very strict guidelines that leave judges with very little leeway.
Factors Considered Regardless of the judge’s latitude, there are statewide guidelines put in place that specify factors that must be considered in determining who pays how much child support. These factors include:
When one parent does not work When income is received on an irregular, non-recurring, or one-time basis, the court may average or prorate the income over a specified period of time or require an obligor to pay as child support a percentage of his or her non-recurring income that is equivalent to the percentage of his or her recurring income paid for child support. Potential or Imputed Income: If the court finds that a parent’s voluntary unemployment or underemployment is the result of the parent’s bad faith or deliberate suppression of income, child support may be calculated based on the parent’s potential income. If a parent has no recent work history or vocational training, potential income should not be less than the minimum hourly wage for a forty hour work week. Third party consideration Guidelines do not apply to child support orders against stepparents or other persons or agencies who are secondarily liable for child support. They may, however, be a small factor to consider in offsetting some expenses that a parent would have otherwise been responsible for. Maxed out guidelines There are cases in which the parents’ combined adjusted gross income is more than 300,000 a year. When income exceeds this threshold, the normal child support schedule is maxed out. Inn cases that involve very high incomes, the courts will need to set the award on their own. When setting this award, the court must ensure that the amount of the award meets the reasonable needs of the child. Contempt of court refers to actions that challenge a court’s authority, cast disrespect on a court, or impede the ability of the court to perform its function. Contempt takes two forms: civil contempt and criminal contempt.
Civil Contempt The most common form of civil contempt happens when someone fails to adhere to an order from the court, resulting in a violation of the rights of a private party. Usually, the injured party is the one to file an action for civil contempt. For example, failing to pay court ordered child support may lead to punishment for civil contempt. The injured party in this scenario would be the parent who has not yet received the court ordered child support payments. Civil contempt sanctions are commonly used to coerce such a person into complying with a court order the person has violated. Unlike criminal contempt, which aims to punish the act, civil contempt has one of two goals. The first goal of civil contempt is to reinstate the rights of the party who was wronged by the failure to fulfill the court’s order. The second is to simply move an underlying proceeding along. When either of these goals is met, civil contempt sanctions typically end. Criminal Contempt Criminal contempt charges, on the other hand, are punitive. This means that they serve to deter future acts of contempt by punishing the wrongdoer. An individual that has been incarcerated for criminal contempt cannot secure their own release by deciding to comply with the court; however, they are given the same constitutional rights guaranteed to criminal defendants. Criminal contempt charges become separate charges from the underlying proceeding. Unlike civil contempt sanctions, criminal contempt charges have the potential to continue after the underlying case has been resolved. Criminal contempt charges may occur directly or indirectly. In order for one to occur directly, the act must take place in the presence of the court. In order for one to occur indirectly, the act must take place outside the presence of the court. Congratulations to Attorney Christopher Adkins for being selected as one of the 10 Best Family Law attorneys for client satisfaction for 2017 by the American Institute of Family Law Attorneys!
Everyone is aware that failing to pay child support is followed by a list of consequences, but just how far does this list of consequences extend? In recent years, the Child Support Enforcement Program (CSE) has added new penalties to the list in order to encourage parents to catch up on unpaid child support. One of these recently added penalties includes your privilege to travel internationally.
The Child Support Enforcement Program is a collaborative program between the federal and state government that assists children and their families with the collection and enforcement of child support awards. As part of this program, once a custodial parent requests assistance, the CSE begins to monitor and enforce all payments. As a noncustodial parent falls behind in their payments, consequences arise. Once you become more than $2,500 behind in child support, the CSE notifies the U.S. Department of State, who then enrolls you in the Passport Denial Program. Beginning in 1997, once you are enrolled into this denial program, any issuance or renewal of a passport will be denied, and any passport you are currently in the possession of will be revoked. If you are behind by more than $2,500 in your child support payments and find yourself enrolled in the Passport Denial Program, you are not stuck. To remove these restrictions and regain eligibility, you must either pay all past due payments or agree to an acceptable payments arrangement. These payments must be arranged with the appropriate state child support enforcement agency - if you owe child support in multiple states, you must complete your payments in each state before moving forward with the removal process. Once all payments have been made or you are enrolled in a payment plan, the CSE will notify the Passport Denial Program, who will then remove your name from their national child support arrearage list. This may take up to 2-3 weeks. Once your name has been removed, you must then contact the National Passport Information Center in order for the continuation of your passport application, or to recover your current passport. If you are considering separation and divorce, emotional issues aside, there are a number of legal issues you need to understand and plan for. In North Carolina, to obtain an absolute divorce, you are required to live separate and apart for a year and a day. During this period of separation, you and your spouse must continuously live separate and apart in different residences – different bedrooms within the same house does not count. Additionally, at least one spouse must have lived in the state for at least six months prior to filing for the divorce.
Before obtaining your divorce, however, it is very important that you and your spouse have divided up your property, and determined any potential spousal support. Any claim for equitable distribution, or the division of marital assets and debts, must be made before the divorce is finalized, or a court will not have jurisdiction over the claim. This is also true for spousal support. If a claim for alimony is not made before the divorce is finalized, the claim cannot be later asserted. The court would not have the authority to enter such an order. Due to this, and in lieu of litigation, it is very common for parties to enter into a separation agreement before they are divorced. Separation agreements outline the terms of a separation, and most commonly cover property and debt division, and spousal support. Separation agreements may also discuss child custody and child support. Typically, however, it is not best practice to put child custody and child support in a separation agreement, versus a consent order. A consent order is enforceable by contempt, whereas a separation is enforceable by breach of contract. For most parties, it is beneficial to enter into a separation agreement because it saves them money (reduces attorney fees and litigation expenses), and gives them more control over what is in the agreement (the parties can determine to terms of the agreement versus a judge making the decision). If you are considering separation and divorce, contact Adkins Law to arrange a consultation. Whether you decide to hire a family law attorney to guide you through your divorce, a consultation with an attorney can at least provide you with information on your rights, and help you make an informed decision on how to proceed. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville, and primary serves Mecklenburg County and the Lake Norman area. If you need to speak with a family law attorney about modifying your child custody order, contact Adkins Law. Adkins Law has locations in Huntersville and Ballantyne. |
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