Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support

If a parent has re-married, is the new spouse’s income considered in calculating child support? Most times, a parent who has re-married shares household expenses with the new spouse. A parent who has remarried will fill out a financial affidavit which may indicate a deficit after listing all monthly expenses and income. The deficit might be the new spouse’s share of household expenses. Is this spouse’s payment of these expenses considered income to the parent who has a child support case pending? This was an issue in the case Nadeau v. Reeves, 4D21-1731 (Fla. 4th DCA October 20, 2021).

In this paternity case, the court imputed income to the mother for purposes of calculating child support. Part of the amount imputed to her was over $1,500.00 based on the mother’s testimony that her spouse pays for all expenses listed on her financial affidavit and that she reasonably expected him to continue doing so. The mother appealed this imputation and thus the child support amount.

The appellate court noted “Section 61.30(2)(a)13., Florida Statutes (2021), provides that ‘gross income’ includes ‘[r]eimbursed expenses or in kind payments to the extent that they reduce living expenses.’ This provision has been interpreted to ‘cover items such as food, housing and vehicles furnished by the employer who is paying wages.’ Hinton v. Smith, 725 So. 2d 1154, 1158 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998). In computing a parent’s child support obligation where that parent has remarried, it is error to use a new spouse’s contributions to inflate the income of the remarried parent. (internal citation omitted) Hinton, 725 So. 2d at 1158 (‘The effect of a former spouse’s remarriage to a new spouse who can contribute to expenses may be an increase in the former spouse’s disposable income after he or she pays child support obligations, but it plays no role in calculating child support.’) (internal citations omitted).”

The court concluded: “The circuit court erred by inflating the mother’s income based on the support she receives from her new spouse. This error appears on the face of the final judgment, warranting reversal even in the absence of a transcript of the proceedings below.” Schedule your consultation with a Miami family law attorney to understand how the law may apply to your case.