Courts, however, may deviate from the guidelines when the noncustodial parent cannot pay, when a child has special considerations, or when the paying parent is slacking.

The guidelines are in place for the parents and the court to have a standardized approach to arriving at an adequate monthly basis of maintaining a living standard for the child that is as close as possible to that which existed prior to the divorce.

The child child support.

Most states have separate guidelines to follow depending on the situation. For example, split custody arrangements will warrant a different calculation than that of a sole or shared custody arrangement.