Financial Support Claims in Divorce | USA

Generally, child support in Oklahoma is determined through the application of statutory guidelines. The child support guidelines are a mathematical formula designed to calculate child support using a number of factors. The two primary factors for child support are gross monthly income and parenting time if one parent’s time with the children exceeds 1/3rd of the calendar year. 

The guidelines stop functioning properly when the combined gross monthly income of both parents exceeds USD15,000 per month. High net worth (HNW) parents quickly reach this cap. The court has the discretion to add additional support based upon the needs and lifestyle of the minor children. As a result, HNW parents may have child support obligations covering private education, extracurricular activities and other child-related expenses.

Alimony (spousal support) is a transitional, temporary concept. An alimony claimant must show proof of financial need to mitigate the impact of the end of the marriage and find gainful employment. Unlike child support, there is no statutory formula or calculator, so alimony is extremely fluid and determined case-by-case. The transitional aspect of alimony is reinforced by the “sum certain” requirement: the total amount of alimony to be paid must be established in the decree, and there is no indefinite, or lifetime, alimony. 

When both child support and alimony are at issue, the alimony award is not attributed to the recipient for purposes of gross monthly income used for the child support calculation, nor is the payor’s alimony obligation deducted from gross monthly income.