New York Divorce Report - New York's Divorce and Family Law Blog

One of the most frequent questions I am asked goes something like this:   I am paying child support for my children pursuant to a New York support order.  I have just remarried.  Will my new spouse’s income be used to calculate child support to be paid to my ex?  The answer is generally no.   Your new spouse is not responsible for paying to support your children from a prior relationship. The exception is, however, if your children are going to seek public assistance, your new spouse’s income may be considered. A more problematic scenario arises when the new marriage... More

This is a common scenario - you are seeking a court order for child support, but the non-custodial parent is claiming an annual income far less than you suspect he/she actually earns. One way to prove that a party’s actual income is higher than his/her reported income is to illustrate how his/her reported lifestyle could not be supported by the reported income. The Appellate Division in Strella v. Ferro ruled that: in calculating a party's child support obligation, the court "need not rely upon the party's own account of his or her finances, but may impute income based upon the... More