If you have a child but are no longer with the child’s other parent, you will likely have to deal with child support at some point. If you have separated from the other parent of your child, you might need to litigate or negotiate child support obligations multiple times over the first 18 years of your child’s life (or sometimes longer). Child support matters can get complex, emotional, and expensive, but our experienced Davis child support attorneys are here to take the stress off of you.
At Pakpour Banks LLP, top-notch representation and client relationships are our main focus. We provide award-winning advocacy daily, and we can help you through any family law issue you face. Contact us right away if you need an advocate.
Questions About Support Are Normal
Your Child’s Financial Stability Starts With a Conversation.
Whether you need to start support, change an order, or catch up on missed payments, the process can feel overwhelming when your child’s needs come first. Pakpour Banks LLP in Davis can walk you through your options and next steps. Schedule a consultation and get clear answers.
Schedule a ConsultationThe State of Child Support
Davis, California, can be a wonderful place to raise a child. Davis was recently named the 89th safest city in California. That says a lot for a state as big as California. But beyond your child’s safety, you likely have concerns about financially supporting your child. And since two households are more expensive than one, supporting your child can be more challenging when your child grows up in two households.
The U.S. Census Bureau has reported that in the past, only 44% of parents with custody have received the full amount of child support they were owed. This is a dismal number, but a good Davis child support attorney can make sure you are not part of a statistic like this. Our lawyers at Pakpour Banks LLP have the tools to help you obtain and enforce the best child support terms.
Here in Yolo County, child support services are run by the Colusa, Sutter, and Yolo Regional Child Support Agency. According to the agency’s 2023-24 annual update, it collected about $13.7 million in child support for Yolo County in 2022-23, and the share of cases resolved by parental agreement (stipulations) was 46.4%. Collection statistics are one thing, but your own order is what matters, and a strong order starts with accurate income and custody-time information.
Rights to Child Support
Whenever parents of a minor child divorce or cease living with each other, at least one parent must pay the other child support. The purpose of child support is to pay for the child’s living expenses, which could include:
- Healthcare costs,
- Housing,
- Education costs,
- Clothing,
- Expenses for extracurricular activities, and
- Food.
You can determine child support obligations through litigation or by negotiating with the other parent. But however you establish child support obligations, you need to go to court to turn those responsibilities into an enforceable court order.
Child Support Services in Davis and Yolo County
If you live in Davis, your child support case is handled in Yolo County.
The court. Child support orders are issued by the Yolo County Superior Court, 1000 Main Street, Woodland, CA 95695. The Family Law Division can be reached at (530) 406-6704. The court’s Self-Help Center and Family Law Facilitator, on the second floor, offers free help with child support forms at (530) 406-6794. Virtual appointments with the child support agency are available during the Self-Help Center’s walk-in hours.
The child support agency. Yolo County’s Local Child Support Agency is the Colusa, Sutter, and Yolo Regional Child Support Agency. Its Woodland office is at 100 W. Court Street, Woodland, CA 95695, open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You can reach the agency at 866-901-3212 or manage an existing case online through CustomerConnect.
Who the agency represents. The agency’s own website states that it never represents parents or guardians in a child support case, and the attorneys in court act on behalf of the county. If you want someone focused on your family’s interests, that is where a private Davis child support attorney comes in.
Determining the Amount of Support Owed
Your budget becomes a big focus when breaking up with the parent of your child. How much money can you expect to send or receive each month in support payments? The State of California has guidelines for calculating support. These guidelines take the following factors into consideration:
- Each parent’s income,
- How much time each parent spends with the child,
- How each parent files their taxes, and
- Other relevant factors.
Reviewing these factors can be a very detailed process because it can require a review of your investments, wages, retirement benefits, public assistance benefits, any additional source of income, and expenses. Fortunately, our experienced family law attorneys in Davis can lead you through this process and make sure that no favorable element is missed in your case.
The Duration of Support
In general, child support obligations last until your child turns 18. However, support payments can extend beyond your child’s 18th birthday if:
- Your child has not completed 12th grade or reached the age of 19,
- Your child has a disability that prevents them from being self-supporting, or
- You and the other parent agree to support your child beyond the age of 18 or 19.
Depending on your agreements and when you and the child’s other parent split, your child support rights or obligations could last for a significant period. However, child support terms can change over time if incomes increase or decrease or if additional expenses come up. If the time comes when you need the child support modified, we can help with that also.
Changing a Support Order
A child support modification agreement or order may be necessary if you or the other parent experience the following:
- Develop a disability,
- Have more children,
- Get a new job,
- Get sent to jail or prison,
- Get laid off or fired,
- Receive an increase in income, or
- Get deployed for military service.
You can seek a modification through the court or the Local Child Support Agency that is handling your case. You can also negotiate new support terms with the other parent and request that the court confirm those new terms by issuing an enforceable order.
Child Support in Davis: Common Questions Answered
California uses a statewide guideline formula that is presumed correct. It considers each parent’s net disposable income, how much time each parent has the children, and the number of children (Fam. Code §§ 4055, 4057). A court can depart from the guideline only in limited circumstances supported by evidence, so accurate income and time-share numbers matter.
Generally, income from any source counts (Fam. Code § 4058). That includes wages, bonuses, commissions, self-employment income, rents, dividends, interest, and benefits such as unemployment or disability. Need-based public assistance and child support you receive for children do not count. If a parent’s income is unknown, the court must consider earning capacity.
Child support helps cover a child’s basic needs, such as housing, food, clothing, healthcare, and education. On top of guideline support, courts must order work-related child care and reasonable uninsured health care costs, and may order educational or special-needs costs and visitation travel (Fam. Code § 4062).
Generally until a child turns 18. Support continues for an unmarried child who is 18 or older, a full-time high school student, and not self-supporting, ending at the earlier of finishing 12th grade or turning 19 (Fam. Code § 3901). Parents of an adult child who cannot earn a living because of incapacity may owe support longer (§ 3910).
Yes, but the court must approve the agreement. A court cannot approve an amount below guideline unless both parents declare, among other things, that they are fully informed of their rights, agreed freely, and that the amount will adequately meet the children’s needs (Fam. Code § 4065). Support is enforceable once it becomes a court order.
You can ask the family court to set support as part of a divorce, separation, or parentage case, or open a case with your local child support agency (Fam. Code § 17400). Davis is in Yolo County, so a Yolo County court or agency is often the starting point, but where you file depends on your situation.
Yes. A support order may be modified at any time as the court determines necessary (Fam. Code § 3651), commonly after a job change, an income change, a disability, or a change in custody time. If you ask your local child support agency to review an order, the change generally needs to be at least 20% or $50, whichever is less.
Generally no. A court cannot modify support amounts that accrued before the date you filed your notice of motion or order to show cause (Fam. Code § 3651). Changes can apply from the filing date forward, so waiting to file can cost you. Limited exceptions exist, such as for deployed servicemembers.
Your existing order stays in effect until the court changes it, so unpaid amounts can keep building. Ask for a modification right away. The court may look at your actual income or, in some cases, your earning capacity (Fam. Code § 4058), so be ready to document your job search and finances.
You can ask your local child support agency or the court to enforce the order. Enforcement tools can include wage withholding, bank levies, tax refund intercepts, property liens, license suspension, and contempt proceedings. The order stays in force and unpaid support remains owed until a court changes it, so keep records of missed payments.
How Can Our Davis Child Support Lawyer Help?
When handling child support or any family law matter, having the help of a good child support lawyer in Davis can be key to a good outcome. A strong advocate can help you with:
- Gathering the appropriate information to state your case,
- Preventing the other parent from taking advantage of you in a negotiation,
- Enforcing previous orders,
- Changing a previous order, and
- Managing the emotional strain of a family law case.
The child support attorneys of Pakpour Banks LLP are here for you.
Talk to Our Davis Child Support Attorneys Today
At Pakpour Banks LLP, our mission is to provide the best service to every client who walks through our door. Our clients and the legal community have given us top reviews, and we take pride in doing what we can to help the residents of California. To schedule a consultation, you can contact us online or give us a call.