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North Carolina Child Custody & Support
(provided by The Rosen Law Firm)
1) Who will get custody of our children?
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You and your spouse can decide which of you will have custody of your
children. If you are unable to resolve this question, then a court will
resolve the issue of custody for you. Judges consider a variety of factors in
determining which parent is entitled to custody including the age of the
child, the time each parent has available to spend with the child, the stability
of the parents, efforts by either parent to undermine the other parent,
abductions, moves out of state, facilitation of visitation and involvement of
the other parent, child abuse and neglect, drug and alcohol problems,
religion, non-marital sexual relationships and the preferences of the
children. In almost all cases, the parent not being awarded custody will be
awarded a period of visitation with the child. Typically, the natural parents
of the child are awarded custody; however, the law provides for custody by
grandparents and other third parties when circumstances warrant such an
arrangement.
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Yes, in North Carolina both parents are responsible for paying child
support and there will always be a payment except in the unusual
circumstance of both parents having exactly the same income and spending
exactly the same amount of time with the children.
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The court will order that child support be paid to the custodial parent by
the non-custodial parent. In North Carolina child support payments are
based on guidelines. These guidelines are adhered to by the court in the
typical case; however, the court may deviate from the guidelines. The
non-custodial parent is ordered by the court to pay a percentage of that
parent's gross monthly income.
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The Child Support Enforcement Agency is a government agency which
works with custodial parents to obtain child support. Private attorneys also
assist custodial parents in the collection of child support. A number of
remedies are available for the enforcement of child support including
seizure of real estate and personal property, orders that bonds be posted,
assignment of wages, garnishment, arrest, and interception of income tax
refunds. The Child Support Enforcement Agency does not require payment
of its fees in advance and it is the most cost efficient mechanism for the
collection of child support by those who are unable to pay the fees required
by private attorneys.
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No, child support obligations are not dischargeable in bankruptcy court.
The Rosen Law Firm located at
http://www.rosen.com/
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