It’s likely that your monthly child support payments may need to be altered if you received a personal injury settlement and are currently paying child support. The following will provide you with further information regarding how your monthly child support payments may be impacted.
You Have Gotten Behind on Payments
You may have missed some child support payments if you have suffered a personal injury. Although this is completely understandable, making your child support obligations in a timely manner is still legally required of you. You will need to set aside some money to catch up on the child support payments that you have missed in the event that you are awarded a personal injury settlement.
If You Are Unable to Work
You may not be able to work due to the severity of the injuries you have suffered. Unfortunately, this can mean that you have not been making your child support payments in a timely manner due to the paychecks you missed out on when you were not able to work. A portion of your award will be earmarked to help you catch up with missed child support payments, especially if you filed the personal injury suit to help supplement the income you lost from not being able to work.
Nontaxable Income versus Taxable Income
When determining child support payments, personal injury settlements are taxed because it is considered a form of income by many states. When it comes to personal injury settlements that are considered income, there are regulations that a few states enforce. Consider this:
- An award of $1,000 or less is not considered income, therefore it is not taxable
- An award that is more than $1,000 is taxable as it is considered income
Your Total Worth
Chances are you will be required by the courts to pay higher child support payments if you have been the recipient of a personal injury settlement. You may not be required to pay more if your personal injury settlement only covers your medical expenses and living expenses.
Scheduling an appointment with a child support lawyer in Tampa FL with experience will be a wise decision if you have received a personal injury settlement. They will assess how much of your personal injury reward will be used to pay child support payments by factoring in the specific conditions and details surrounding your case. You will find it to be extremely helpful to have an attorney navigate through the process with you as sorting out the details can be overwhelming.
Thank you to our friends and contributors at The McKinney Law Group for their knowledge about child support.