FAMILY LAW :

STATE: IL

Assignments

1.Obtain a copy of your state's child support guidelines and answer the following questions:

a.What approach is used?

b.How is income of the custodial parent treated?

c.How is income of the child treated?

d.What happens when the obligor has a prior family? A subsequent family?

e.How are extraordinary expenses treated?

f.What other factors influence the amount?

2.Obtain a copy of the child support worksheet that is used in your state to calculate support awards. Using the worksheet and consulting the guidelines where necessary, calculate a support award based on the following facts:

a.Mom has custody of the two children, ages 4 and 9.

b.Her gross income is $22,000; her adjusted gross income is $18,700.

c.She has yearly child-care expenses of $8,000.

d.Dad's gross income is $46,000; his adjusted gross income is $39,000.

e.He spends what would be considered a typical amount of time visiting with his children.

f.Dad maintains a family health insurance policy that covers the children; the cost of this policy to him is $380 per month and the cost of maintaining an individual policy would be $190 per month.

g.The nine-year old child has severe learning disabilities, which require the hiring of special tutors; the monthly cost of this is $225.

h.Neither parent has other children.

3.Develop a client intake questionnaire for use in cases where support is an issue. Make sure you consult the guidelines so that all relevant considerations are accounted for.

4.Assume that a client in your office is seeking a divorce from her husband, who left the state five years ago. Since that time, she has had no contact with him, but she does know where he is living. Locate UIFSA as adopted by your state and determine whether your state can exercise personal jurisdiction over him for purposes of entering a child support order. Now, do the same but with the following change. Assume that the client and her husband never lived together in your state but that she moved here following their separation. However, the husband makes periodic visits to see the child. Under this set of facts, can your state obtain personal jurisdiction over him? Explain your answer.