When will a court impute parental income to calculate child support?
It is quite common for the income of one parent – particularly a father – to plummet when marital warfare breaks out. It is also not uncommon for one or both parties to lose a job or to stop working the overtime that had been customarily performed. Child support awards are based on the income of both parties. What happens if the income of the father declines drastically? What should the court do about child support obligations under such circumstances? These vexing issues occur in many family law disputes. The concept of imputing income to parents who are not actually earning that income is a consideration that is built into the child support guidelines. If the court finds that either parent is, without just cause, voluntarily underemployed or unemployed, then the court will impute income to that person. The court will impute income to the parent based on: (1)the potential employment that the parent has based on his/her work history and skills; (2) a review of the past work history of
