Lawyers Manual - Unified Court System

Victim Who Needs Child Support 155
candidates for this type of benefit. Another example would be a truck or car that
was supplied by the employer, which the employee was allowed to take home for
personal use. A similar analysis can be made of fringe benefits that are provided as
part of compensation for employment.
Still another area fertile for imputation of income arises when a noncustodial
parent claims he has little, or no, income. The court can base an order on ability
to earn, rather than the claimed economic situation. Or you may find that the
parent meets certain expenses somehow (especially such things as car payments
and mortgage payments, repairs to a house, rent or meals eaten at restaurants), or
owns something of value that requires upkeep (e.g., an expensive house or boat).
You can then ask the court to impute at least that amount of income.
Money, Goods or Services Furnished by Others
Income can also be imputed to money, goods or services furnished by
relatives and friends. Frequently, a parent comes to court professing to have no
income and to be living off the charity of friends and/or relatives. This is the
person who is living with his mother or whose girlfriend is supporting him,
while he, himself, makes “absolutely no income.” In such a case, it will be
useful to find out exactly how much income the friend or relative has, not so
much in order to impute any of it to the noncustodial parent, but to show that
this couldn’t be possible, given the expenses the friend or relative must have,
even without supporting him. The court may then be persuaded to attribute the
money, goods or services as income.
Income Based on Prior Earnings
The court can impute an amount of income based upon the parent’s former
resources or income if it determines that the parent has reduced resources or
income in order to reduce or avoid the parent’s obligation for child support.
You will need to show that the unfortunate business failure, for instance, or the
sudden inability to get overtime work was connected to an upcoming child
support obligation and not to an economic downturn.
What May be Deducted from Parental Income
The CSSA requires the court to deduct certain expenses before arriving at
the income available for child support.
Unreimbursed Employee Business Expenses
Unreimbursed employee business expenses may be deducted from income
only if the money was not spent for personal purposes. Union dues are not
included as deductions from income because the employee usually receives
benefits from these payments, such as dental, vision or legal services.