CHILD SUPPORT CALCULATING INCOME FOR CHILD SUPPORT EVIDENCE REQUIRED In Segall v. Segall, 708 So.2d 983 (Fla.4th DCA 1998), a final judgment calculating child support without any findings of the parties’ net income was reversed. “Without the benefit of explicit findings on net income attributable to the husband and the wife, we are unable to determine if the amount of modified support is within the guidelines or substantially exceeds the guidelines.” Jones v. Jones, 636 So.2d 867 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994). Quoting Florida Statute 61.30(1)(a), the Fourth District noted “The child support guideline amount as determined by this section presumptively establishes the amount the trier of fact shall order as child support in an initial proceeding for such support . . .” This amount of support must be based upon a finding of net incomes of the parties. A court must receive evidence with respect to the factors enumerated in Section 61.30, Florida Statutes, according to Huff v. Huff, 556 So.2d 537 (Fla.4th DCA 1990). Those factors establish the basis for the conclusion of the parties’ net incomes. A similar result occurred in Matias v. Matias, 948 So.2d 1021, 1023 (Fla. 2nd DCA 2007), when the Second District Court of Appeal concluded that, “The detailed evidence necessary to make a proper child support calculation under section 61.30, Florida Statutes (2005), was, in part, overlooked. The trial court’s attempt to calculate an accurate amount of child support based on the limited evidence available was unsuccessful, and the resulting calculation is not supported by competent, substantial evidence.” The child support award was remanded for the trial court to readdress the support based upon the parties’ current financial information. In Magann v. Magann, 848 So.2d 496 (Fla. 2nd DCA 2003), the fact that the former wife’s financial affidavit was not made a part of the trial record was a sufficient basis to reverse an award of child support. In addition there was no evidence of the former husband’s recent income. The case was “remanded for a new trial so that the appropriate evidence can be offered and the child support award can be correctly calculated.” A trial court’s determination of a parties’ ability to pay support was not supported by substantial, competent evidence and the award of child support was therefore reversed in DeSanto v. DeSanto, 621 So.2d 560 (Fla. 2nd DCA 1993). Basing an award on past income despite uncontroverted evidence of an inability to pay was also reversible. See also Messal v. Messal, 424 So.2d 932 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983).
Posted on: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 13:58:16 +0000
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