Ensuring All Of Your Child’s Needs Are Met
Texas Family Code requires that parents provide for their children. The parent receiving the child support is responsible for making sure that needs such as clothing, housing, day care and groceries are met. Child support also includes paying for health insurance and 50% of unreimbursed medical expenses.
At Law Office of Diane St. Yves, PLLC, in Houston, our No. 1 priority is to ensure that your children receive the financial support they are guaranteed and that they need to thrive.
Child Support For Unmarried Fathers
When a couple is married, the children born are assumed to be the children of the husband. Today, it is not unusual for a couple to have children and never marry. In this instance, it is necessary to establish paternity. This can be done one of two ways:
- A mother and father can both sign an Acknowledgement of Paternity. This asserts that the man who signs is the legal father to that child.
- If the first option is not viable, a father can obtain a court order. A DNA test may be administered. A DNA test will prove conclusively who the father is or is not. A DNA test is helpful in situations where a relationship was not exclusive or continuous.
Unmarried parents can protect their rights by working with an experienced family law attorney. Establishing paternity is important in both child support and child custody matters.
What Affects Child Support In Texas?
The courts tend to stick with established guidelines when it comes to child support. The court does have the ability to deviate when it finds “good cause” to do so. The court takes into account many factors when determining child support. The main factors the court considers are:
- How old your child or children are and what they need to be able to do well
- How able each parent is to financially contribute
- How much funding the child needs to maintain their current education and activities
- The health care, insurance, travel expenses for the child
- Whether there are other children a parent is supporting
- How much time each parent spends with the child, for example, who the child lives with
- The cost of child care for the working parent (s)
- Cash flow and debts of each parent
Today, parents are opting to split the costs of children in a manner that makes more sense for their child. Most courts permit this as long as it is in the child’s “best interest.” Most child support is paid through the Child Support Disbursement Unit in San Antonio. The state then sends the payment to the receiving parent. We can assess your situation and let you know how much Texas child support you will likely be paying or receiving. We can also assist should your situation change significantly and a modification of payments be necessary.
Connect With Us For The Child Support Guidance You Need
As you can see, there are many possibilities and options with respect to child support. Our firm founder, attorney Diane St. Yves, has decades of family law experience and is board certified in family law. Together with attorney Ashley Coleman and our firm staff, we help you negotiate child support in a manner that is in the “best interest” of your child. We serve clients in the Greater Houston and surrounding areas along with South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley. Call 281-816-4258 or connect via our online form.