Legal Question in Family Law in Massachusetts

In the new August 2013 child support guidelines, one of the circumstances for deviation (#6) is if "application of the guidelines would result in a gross disparity in the standard of living between the two households such that one household is left with an unreasonably low percentage of the combined available income." I can find nothing on line about the recipient making twice the income of the payor and what percentage of income would be considered a "gross disparity" (i.e. 60/40, 70/30, 75/25). I am looking for information regarding this issue. Thanks.


Asked on 7/09/13, 9:55 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Steven Hemingway Grolman LLP

The reason you cannot find any information is because none exists. Being that the guidelines are so new, they have not yet gone through judicial scrutiny.

The fact is that the guidelines usually take care of evening things out on their own. If one party is making, for instance, 50k and the other is making 400k, only the first 208k or so is subjected to the guidelines. That means that everything over 158k is subject to the court's discretion. If the court decides that the children should have an additional 100k per year, then so be it.

You are always free to make your case that the guidelines result in disparate incomes. For a while, anyway, each judge is going to rule a little differently. I recommend retaining a good family attorney who will help plead your case.

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Answered on 9/12/13, 1:07 pm


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