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ILLINOIS’ NEW CHILD SUPPORT LAW: MAJOR CHANGES COMING ON JULY 1, 2017

 Posted on June 14, 2017 in Family Law

As of July 1, 2017, Public act 099-0764 will thereby amend section 5 to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (also known as the IMDMA). The IMDMA is the statute or law that specifies and dictates how child support is to be calculated and collected in Illinois along with other provisions as to the support of any minor children that are the subject of a court matter. Regardless of whether a person is facing a Dissolution of Marriage or a Paternity Action, the new law is set to radically change how we calculate child support today.

Currently, child support is calculated by generally considering a non-majority or non-custodial parent’s net income. Net income is generally considered whatever income a parent earns after various deductions are applied such as Federal, State, Social Security and Medicaid taxes. Once a parent’s net income is determined, the parent pays a determined amount of percentage as for child support that is dependent upon the amount of minor children (one child=20%; two children=28%; three children=28%; four children=40%).

On July 1, 2017, Illinois will join 39 other states in adopting the income shares model for calculating child support. This new model will now look into calculating the net income of both parents in calculating what percentage (or share) a parent should contribute towards the support of their child based upon the available combined net income of the parents. For example, if Parent A earns $20,000.00 net a year and Parent B earns $80,000.00 net per year; Parent A would be responsible to contribute 20% of his/her net income towards the child’s support (Parent A earns 20% of the Parties’ combined net income) and Parent B would be responsible to contribute 80% of his net income towards the child’s support (Parent B earns 80% of the Parties’ combined net income). However, these percentages are then offset with the greater earning parent paying his proportionate share to the other parent. Moreover, among other new provisions within the statute that this blog will discuss on a later date; the new law will also now consider other factors for purposes of determining child support such as other allowable deductions, other children unrelated to the court matter and the amount of parenting time that is allocated to both parents. The new model is truly a new way of considering the needs of a child and the ability of each parent to provide for those needs.

However, as exciting as the new model may be, it will require a new learning curve for everyone involved (attorneys included). With that said, this new model may create great challenges for pro se litigants (parties without counsel) who attempt to calculate child support on their own as the new model also creates new challenges in calculating the actual net income of the parties involved. As noted above, the calculation of net income is crucial as the percentage contribution towards child support will be based on a parent’s available net income. Hence, the representation and assistance of an experienced child support attorney may greatly aid a party in accurately determining what child support he or she should (or shouldn’t) pay.

As noted above, the statute is new and expansive, and it contains many new terms and provisions that may be difficult to grasp and understand. The attorneys at Serrano Hanson can aid you in explaining the new statute and give you the tailored and individualized advice that you need. Schedule a consultation today by calling Serrano Hanson at 630-844-8781. We are happy to assist our clients for matters arising in Kane, Dekalb, DuPage and Kendall County.

Sources:

  • http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/99/PDF/099-0764.pdf
  • http://lawbennett.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/ISBA-Bar-Journal-December-2016-Child-Support-Article_merged2.pdf
  • https://www.illinoislegalaid.org/legal-information/changing-child-support-payments

Disclaimer: This article/blog was written by an attorney from Serrano Hanson and is accurate and true to the best of our knowledge, but there may be omissions, errors or mistakes. This article/blog (or the reading of this article/blog) does not create an attorney-client relationship, and the attorneys at Serrano Hanson do not represent the readers of this blog. The legal information contained within this blog/article is meant solely for informational purposes and is not meant to be legal advice nor a legal assessment of an individual person’s case matter; hence, you should consult with an attorney before you rely on this information.

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