Tag Archives: Child Support

Spousal support, alimony pendente lite (support during the pendency of the divorce) and alimony payments are treated as taxable income to the payee and deductible to the payor for tax purposes.  However, child support payments are neither taxable income to the payee, nor tax deductible to the payor.  Court orders that include spousal support or […]

In most instances, and for obvious reasons, divorce in Pennsylvania or anywhere else is a weighty matter. That is really not surprising, given the number of considerations that can arise when a couple seeks to legally dissolve a marital union. Although every divorce brings its own set of circumstances that need to be considered and […]

A Kansas sperm donor has been ordered to pay child support, despite an agreement to have no involvement and/or responsibility for the child. The sperm donor is seeking to appeal the decision. See links below. ABC News USA Today

In Kimock v. Jones, 47 A.3d 850 (Pa.Super. 2012), the Superior Court affirmed the trial court’s ruling in the parties’ child support proceeding. The parties were married for eleven years, having one daughter during such time. Father was physically and verbally abusive to Mother and the child. After the parties’ separation, Father went extended periods […]

A child support obligation generally terminates at age 18, or when the child has graduated high school, whichever date occurs later, despite the fact that the age of majority in Pennsylvania for purposes other than support is 21. Because the obligation of child support is based upon the parent-child relationship, the obligation ends when a […]

Support awards may be enforced by contempt proceedings against the person failing to pay, by seizing assets to satisfy back-support, or by wage attachment. The court may also order the suspension of licenses for non-payment. Where support is paid according to a court order, a wage attachment is typically mandatory. Employers must comply with wage attachment orders, or contempt proceedings may be brought against them. Most forms of government payments to a person are also subject to attachment to pay support, but special rules apply in the case of veterans’ benefits; support may be obtained directly from the Veterans Administration. Tax refunds may be intercepted for the payment of past-due support. Where support is paid according to an agreement between parties, the agreement may be enforced under the Pennsylvania Divorce Code to the same extent as a court order. A person’s wages may not be garnished in an amount greater than fifty percent of the person’s wages. Agreements or orders entered in other states are similarly enforceable under the Code. Generally, support obligations are not dischargeable in bankruptcy. Alimony obligations may be enforced in the same

A party may be ordered to maintain health insurance for his or her spouse and/or children as part of a support order, where the health insurance coverage is available for the payor spouse at no cost or at a reasonable cost. The payment of health insurance for a spouse and/or children is factored into the […]

Spousal support, alimony pendente lite (support during the pendency of the divorce action) and alimony payments (support after the entry of the divorce decree) are treated as taxable income to the payee and deductible to the payor for tax purposes. However, child support payments are neither taxable income to the payee, nor tax deductible to the […]