Are you going through a separation? Are you looking for legal help with child support, a parenting arrangement, and more?
Family law can be confusing, and no one should navigate it alone. In order to get the best outcome for yourself and your child, you must understand the basics of child support and parenting arrangements.
Read on to learn about these staples of Canadian family law, and how J. Leigh Daboll Law Office can help you navigate them.
What Is a Parenting Arrangement?
Simply put, a parenting arrangement refers to the way you and your spouse interact with your child after separation. Your parenting arrangement will be written down in a legally binding contract.
Creating a parenting arrangement can be tricky. The Department of Justice recommends hiring an experienced family lawyer to help you navigate this process.
Determining Factors
The factors that determine your parenting arrangement may include:
The circumstances of your separation
How you and your co-parent usually split up parenting duties
You and your co-parent's respective financial situations
You and your co-parent's respective living arrangements
Your child's preference
Your family lawyer can walk you through any further determining factors in your particular case.
What Is Child Support?
Child support payments are made by the parent without primary custody, to the parent who does take primary custody of a child after separation. In Canada, every child has a legal right to financial support from both parents, whether they live together or not.
Most parents pay child support once per month. If a parent fails to pay child support, they can face legal consequences.
Fun fact: in 2020, less than 35% of Canadian child support payments were in full compliance. This means that either a parent failed to pay, or they did not pay on time.
Determining Factors
The amount of a child support payment depends largely on two factors: the way two parents split custody, and the amount of money each parent makes. If your child spends weekends with you and weekdays with your co-parent, you shouldn't have to pay as much child support as someone who doesn't have any custody of their child. After all, you are using your money to support your child during those weekends. If you were not the breadwinner of your household before separation, you should also not be made to pay large child support payments. To make sure you're getting a fair deal out of your child support arrangements, consult the experienced family lawyers at J. Leigh Daboll.
Family Law Resources
Contact J. Leigh Daboll for issues with child support and other family law services in St. Catharines, Niagara Falls and the surrounding areas. We offer over 20 years of experience, individualized attention, and 24/7 emergency services.
We're here to provide you with the right advice and guidance after the separation process with your family's best interests in mind.