Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

Re: Child Support Payment Revision

1. yes you pay more child support for two children from different mothers than two children by the same mother. about 30% more

2. in virginia the living expenses of the custodial parent are irrelevant. only the gross income of the parties, work related child care expense and health care cost are in the formula found in the va code section 29-108.2. i do not know puerto rican law.

3. you cannot transfer the cases to virginia until the children have lived here 6 months

4. if the cases are ever transferred to va then va law would control and you would have support obligation until the child was 18, or 19 as long as the child was a full time high school student.

5. mother's drug use has no relevance to child support.

6. mother's additional children will increase your support not lower it. mother would be entitled to reduce her gross income available to your children by the amount the code says it would take to support her other children thus making your income share of the combined income higher.

7. cost of living is irrelevant to support. see the response to #2.

not the answers you were hoping for. sorry.

good luck.

Re: Child Support Payment Revision

Here it goes for Puerto Rican law, but it is not promising:

1. Yes, usually child support in Puerto Rico is set by guidelines established by the ASUME and the courts. However, because children with separate mothers will not share the irregular adjustments like housing, day care and other adjustments to the guidelines, it is likely that your child support will increase.

2. The fact that the mothers of your children are sharing the household with their parents may decrease your child support payments because the housing expense would have to be equally divided amongst all adults currently living in the household and then apportioned to your child by half.

3. No. Puerto Rico has parens patriae until the children change their residency.

4. WRONG. In Puerto Rico non-custodial parents pay child-support until the child becomes 21, but if the child demonstrates that he or she is pursuing a post-secondary academic degree your child support payments will have to cover the basics in the guidelines, plus college housing, tuition, books and transportation. Payments are adjusted if the child works, or receives federal aid, but never below the levels set by the guidelines. Courts in Puerto Rico will impose responsibility for the payment of the child support, the courts in the state in which you reside, presumably Virginia, will most likely enforce such a resolution.

5. Use of illegal drugs is not a basis for reduction of non-custodial parent's child support payments. In fact if she proves that illegal drug use has made her incapable of generating an income, full payment of the guidelines' level of income will be imposed on to you, plus adjustments.

6. No. In fact, because she has more children her income generating capability will be apportioned amongst the three children yielding a higher percentage that you must cover - you will pay more.

7. No. The fact that wages abroad are usually substantially higher than wages in Puerto Rico makes child support payments for individuals in your situation almost insufferably high. Child support is a simple formula, which usually works against the dad. The courts will only consider your wages and will apportion the child's needs accordingly. Actually, if cost of living in Virginia is higher than in Puerto Rico, then the court will consider that the child deserves the level of living that you currently enjoy in Virginia and will most probably tip the balance towards imposing higher adjustments to the guidelines in favor of the child.