In Washington State, child support is determined by the combined net incomes of both parents. Often, determining net income is an easy task for a Seattle child support attorney. When a person's income comes from wages from a single job, your Seattle child support lawyer may rely on pay stubs, bank statements, and tax returns to determine income. Income includes such things as disability benefits, money generated from inheritance, social security benefits, and business income. Effective Seattle child support attorneys need to be fully aware of all the possible sources of income in every case.
You may worry that the other side will "work under the table" or take a lower paying job just to avoid paying child support. Every Seattle child support attorney knows the dangers of this kind of behavior, but she also knows ways to remedy the problem. Courts will "impute" income to anyone who is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, if your Seattle child support lawyers can show that the behavior is specifically intended to avoid paying support. Furthermore, your Seattle child support lawyer may use various legal methods of discovery for income information on the opposing party. These methods include subpoenas to banks and employers, depositions, and written interrogatories and requests to produce documents. In all Seattle child support cases, the court requires each side to provide supporting documentation for their claimed income levels.
While the possibility of fraud and deception can never really be eliminated, a diligent, experienced Seattle child support attorney can do a lot to get the right amount of supported ordered in each case.
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