Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland
How much should I pay?
A custodial parent chooses not to work, she has told the non-custodial parent that he must make increased child support payments to her; is this legal?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: How much should I pay?
It is not up to the custodial parent to determine the amount of child support to which she is entitled. If she is capable of working and there are jobs available to her, she is "voluntarily impoverishing" herself in electing not to do so. In a court proceeding to determine how much child support should be paid, the judge will attribute whatever income he/she thinks she should be making to her and factor that into the child support calculation along with the income of the noncustodial parent. The noncustodial parent is strongly advised to hire an attorney if a child support action is filed.