Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When a parent is alleged to be underemployed, for purposes of calculating child support, the parent can be imputed to a higher income. Imputation is a two-step analysis which requires the court to make findings about (1) whether the parent's underemployment was voluntary (absent a finding of fact by the court of physical or mental incapacity or other circumstances over which the parent has no control), and (2) if so, the calculation of imputed income (which involves analysis of the employment potential and probable earnings level of the parent shall be determined based upon his or her recent work history, occupational qualifications, and prevailing earnings level in the community if such information is available. A.A. v. M.A., 2D2023-0676 (Fla. 2d DCA November 1, 2024).
In the case of A.A. v. M.A., the mother in this case was reportedly uncooperative in the proceedings. She failed to provide discovery, and her pleadings were stricken. She appeared at the final hearing pro se and was combative. She ultimately left the hearing before it was concluded and never returned. As a result, the court took testimony from the father that the mother was known to last have a job earning $110,000 annually in North Carolina four years prior but that she left that job and moved to Florida. The court accepted this testimony and imputed this income level to the mother for purposes of calculating child support. There was a finding made in a prior order that the mother was an alcoholic and that this condition prevented her from caring for herself or her children. The mother appealed.
The appellate court reversed on the grounds that (1) the information was too outdated (“Evidence of previous earnings as recent as a year prior can be considered outdated.”); (2) “there was no evidence presented that A.A. left the 2019 position voluntarily or that she otherwise was voluntarily unemployed or underemployed for purposes of the statute. To the contrary, the evidence was consistent with the dependency court's finding that A.A.'s alcoholism was so severe that she was unable to care for herself or parent her children or even to visit them without supervision. In other words, the evidence strongly suggested that A.A.'s underemployment was due to ‘physical or mental incapacity or other circumstances over which [she had] no control’”, and (3) “even if it could be found that A.A. was voluntarily underemployed, there was no evidence of her occupational qualifications or of the prevailing earnings level in the community for her type of work, as required by section 61.30(2)(b). [. . .] Notably, the income imputed to A.A. was based on her wages in North Carolina. But because she had since relocated to the Tampa Bay area in Florida, the court should have considered the latter to be the relevant job market.”
The court concluded by acknowledging the mother’s adverse behavior, but noted that the statute allowed the court to impute the mother to minimum wage in light of her uncooperative behavior. Schedule your meeting with a Miami family law attorney to receive specific advice about your case.