Can Parents Agree on Child Support Without the Court’s Involvement?

 Posted on August 11, 2022 in Divorce

If you are an unmarried parent or a parent who will soon divorce, child-related concerns like child custody and child support are likely top priorities. Child support can be an extremely important source of income for the receiving parent and a significant expense for the paying parent. Many parents wonder if they can work out a child support arrangement on their own, without the court’s involvement. They may want to negotiate a child support agreement that is different than what the court would order or simply do not wish to deal with the court system.

Handshake Child Support Agreements Are Not a Good Idea

Parents who are no longer in a romantic relationship but are still on good terms with each other may wish to set up an informal, handshake agreement regarding child support. For example, an unmarried mother may ask the father to pay a certain amount of money to her directly each month instead of setting up a child support order through the court system.

The issue with this type of informal arrangement is that it is not legally binding. The court cannot enforce a child support order that was not established through the court. Even if you and the child’s other parent are on good terms now, that may not always be the case. Your child deserves to have financial support from both parents and setting up an official child support order through the court is the best way to do this.

Parents Cannot Waive the Right to Child Support

Illinois considers financial support to the child to be the child’s right, not the parent’s right. So, parents cannot simply agree not to pay child support. In the majority of cases, Illinois courts determine child support based on the Income Shares formula, a calculation method that uses both parents’ net incomes. The court may deviate from the child support guidelines if using the guidelines would be “inequitable, unjust, or inappropriate.”

If the parents agree to a support payment amount that differs from the guidelines described in Illinois law, the judge will only approve this agreement if the parents can prove why following the guidelines is inappropriate. Ultimately, the court will enact the child support arrangement that is in the child’s best interests.

Contact a Joliet Child Support Lawyer

The Will County family law attorneys at Law Offices of Tedone and Morton, P.C. can help you with child support, parenting time, parental responsibilities, divorce, and much more. Call our Joliet office at 815-666-1285 or our Plainfield office at 815-733-5350 for a free consultation.

Source:

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/documents/075000050k505.htm