Child support is a crucial issue in many divorce and family law cases. It helps ensure that children's financial needs will be met after their parents separate. In the state of Illinois, child support orders are designed to address various expenses related to raising children. To understand what considerations may affect the calculation of child support and what expenses will need to be addressed, a parent can work with an attorney who has experience representing clients in family law cases.
Determining Child Support in Illinois
In Illinois, child support determinations are made based on what is known as an “income shares” model. The calculation of child support obligations will take both parents' incomes into account, and the costs involved in raising children will be divided proportionally between the parents based on their respective levels of income. In many cases, the parent who has the majority of the parenting time will receive child support payments from the other parent. However, in cases where parents share equal or near-equal amounts of parenting time, or have at least 146 overnights, additional calculations are required to divide child support obligations based on the amount of overnight time children spend with each parent.
Courts may consider several factors when calculating child support, including:
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