Child support in Illinois is designed to ensure that the financial needs of the child are being met by both parents. It is based on guidelines, which take into account each parent’s income and a number of other factors. As such, child support is greater for those who make more money. This helps ensure that the child enjoys a similar lifestyle to the one he or she enjoyed during the marriage.
The child support payments go to the receiving spouse though and not directly to the child. So, sometimes it may feel like child support is for the receiving spouse and not the child. This is what a hedge fund manager from Illinois believes as his wife is seeking $1 million per month for child support. This may be a legitimate number based on what the hedge fund manager makes, but he contends that his wife is seeking it just to fund her own lavish lifestyle.
The monthly expenses listed by the wife include $14,000 for food, a private jet, vacations and even $2,000 for stationary. She contends that these are necessary expenses for the children to continue living the same lifestyle they enjoyed during the marriage.
While this is an extreme case for child support, the principles are the same as most child support cases in Illinois. The child support guidelines take into account the income of both parents, who pays for the health insurance and other factors. However, the court can still deviate from the guidelines depending on the circumstances in each matter. The child may have special needs or like in the above case the child may attend an expensive school or has become accustomed to a certain lifestyle.
Child support matters in Illinois may seem fairly straightforward when one looks at the guidelines, but the matters can be quite complicated. This is especially the case if one parent is seeking a deviation from the guidelines. Experienced child support attorneys understand these complications and can help parents through the process.
Source: ABC News, “Hedge fund owner could face $1 million monthly child support payments“, by Paula Faris, Emily Stanitz, Amanda Keegan and Dan Good, Feb. 25, 2015