Legal Question in Family Law in California

Re: Child Support used for Kids Clothes?

you are correct. dont pay it.

Re: Child Support used for Kids Clothes?

Do you have to pay the additional amount for the children's clothing, the answer is no. You can also feed them gruel for every meal, but I think that you would agree that is not the right thing to do. If you have a true 50/50 custody situation then you are receiving a substantial reduction in your child support because the court assumes that you are picking up a substantial amount of the costs of the children, including clothing. Your child support paid to the mother is not intended to cover all of the costs of the children, only to equalize the income between the households, based upon the amount each household spends on the children, which is measured in time spent, which is not necessarily the best way, but it is California's way. A true 50/50 custody situation is when you have the children one half of the time. In that case the quideline formula divides the money that the court determines, by the formula, that should be spent ont the children about equally between the two households, assuming that each household will contribute equally to the children's welfare. Therefore, if you have 50/50 custody, you should, but are not legally obligated to pay for one half of the children's clothing. Good Luck, Pat McCrary