Child Support

Atlanta-Marietta Child Support Attorneys

New child support guidelines

As you may be aware, on January 1, 2007, Georgia’s traditional child support guidelines changed significantly. Whereas the former child support law ostensibly only considered the income of the parent obligated to pay child support, the new law takes into account the income of both parents in determining the child support obligation.

If you are going through a divorce in Georgia, the new guidelines will be used to determine how much child support you will pay or receive. If you are currently paying or receiving child support, you may be entitled to a modification of your support order based on the new guidelines.

The lawyers at Stearns-Montgomery & Associates understand the new child support guidelines and will guide you through the legal process of determining or modifying child support payments. Lawyer Mary Stearns-Montgomery has given several seminars on the new law to other family law attorneys in Georgia.

In drafting this new law, the Georgia legislature created a new child support obligation table. This table determines the basic child support obligation based on the combined monthly income of both parents and the number of children to be supported. The amount from this chart is presumed to be the appropriate amount of child support to be provided by both parents prior to considering other factors such as the parent who pays for, and the cost of, the children’s health insurance and work-related child care. Next, the amount of child support to be paid by each parent is prorated based on each parent’s individual income.

The following five simple steps are the most common denominators of all the potential scenarios that one would encounter in attempting to calculate child support under the new guidelines. Hopefully, it will help to explain the process further:

Step 1: Gross Income

• Mother earns $60,000 annually
• Father earns $40,000 annually

Step 2: Combined Adjusted Income

• $100,000 divided by 12 months = $8,333.33

Step 3: Basic Child Support Obligation as provided by the table

• $1,134.00

Step 4: Pro Rata Division

• $60,000 divided by $100,000 = 60 percent (Mother)
• $40,000 divided by $100,000 = 40 percent (Father)

Step 5: Presumptive amount of Child Support

• Mother: $1,134.00 times 60% = $680.40
• Father: $1,134.00 times 40% = $453.60

Please be aware that this is for educational purposes only, meant simply to begin to familiarize you with Georgia’s new child support law. This example does not account for many of the other factors that can be considered, such as preexisting child support obligations, whether a parent is self-employed, other children in a parent’s home, extraordinary educational and medical expenses, and extracurricular activities.

Feeling confused or intimidated by all the number crunching? Wondering whether your case qualifies for a modification?

We can help. Our attorneys have been thoroughly trained in implementing this new law and are here to answer any questions or concerns you may have. If you like additional information about the new guidelines and how these can affect your family, please call Stearns-Montgomery & Associates today at (770) 426-1148 or fill out our simple contact form. We have law offices in Atlanta and Marietta.

Learn more about child support in Georgia

Child Support FAQ

Modification of Child Support

Child Support Enforcement

Online Georgia Child Support Calculator