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Child Support for

Highly Compensated Professionals

You are fortunate. You’ve reached a able to go on trips, have nice toys, be children should not have port, of which $3,000
high point in your ability to earn a liv- driven in a decent car, live in a a lifestyle consistent with per month is to be paid
ing from your profession. On the other respectable neighborhood and go to your earnings, but it is to to the former spouse and
hand, your marriage has fallen apart good schools. That is true even if the say that extravagance $3,000 is to be paid to a
and you are contemplating divorce. You former spouse would not be able to should not become the guardian.
know you will have to pay child sup- afford them and literally goes along for norm, especially late in a A cautionary note.
port for the children of your marriage, the ride. failing marriage. (1) A BY NORMAN S. Divorce cases are fact-
but how much? You’ve heard of the The second principle is that child child is only entitled to intensive and every case
Florida child support guidelines and support should not exceed a reasonable share in the good fortune SEGALL, ESQ. has its own nuances.
maybe had a look online at §61.30, Fla. amount, taking into account the first of his parent consistent Judges have a great deal
Stat., which is where you can find those principle. The courts determine that with an appropriate lifestyle. of discretion in circumstances like
guidelines. amount by using the statutory guide- You don’t want to pay the money to those discussed here and that discretion
You have two minor children of this lines as a starting point. Section 61.30 your ex-spouse - apply for a guardian. is rarely disturbed on appeal. We like
marriage. You make $800,000 per year allows the court to deviate by 5% up or You do not want excessive child sup- our clients to have happy marriages
after taxes. Your soon-to-be ex-spouse down (the “presumptive guideline sup port to be alimony in disguise. Maybe rather than the alternative of spending
makes $40,000 after taxes. A quick port amount”). However, Florida you want to put the excessive support time with us.
reading of the guidelines chart tells you appellate courts have interpreted the payments into a trust or pay it to a Enjoy your good fortune but remem-
that your child support will be at least statute as permitting a party to show guardian. Anything but to give all that ber that there may be consequences
$6,391 per month. Yikes! That is high- that the presumptive guideline support money to your ex-spouse so he or she from an extravagant lifestyle if the alter-
way robbery, you say. Alimony in dis- amount is inappropriate and can be can buy expensive cars, clothes and a native rears its ugly head.
guise! The children can’t possibly need, adjusted to accomplish a reasonable new house. Or even worse, spend it on
use or spend that amount. You are lifestyle for the children. a new significant other. Norman Segall, Esq., Partner at Lubell
right, and there is a remedy. The actual expenditures for the chil- The good news is that there is author- Rosen can be reached at (305) 665-3425
Presumptive Child Support dren’s needs are evidence that the court ity for the appointment of a guardian of or nss@lubellrosen.com.
Guidelines vs. Reasonable Support. will weigh in determining whether to the property to protect a portion of the
There are two principles in play. vary the support amount from the child support payment that the court
First, the law is clear that a child is enti- guideline formula. Thus, the highly- determines not to be needed for the (1) This is not to say that extravagance
tled to share in the good fortune of his compensated professional is well children’s day-to-day custodial expens- before the final months will not be consid-
or her parents. If at least one of the par- advised to keep watch for extravagant es. Thus, for example, the court could ered. It will be. The lifestyle of the marriage
ents is successful, the child should be spending. That is not to say that the award $6,000 per month in child sup- is also important in alimony considerations.

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South Florida Hospital News southfloridahospitalnews.com July 2017 3