From a Single Mom:

My ex and I have been divorced 10 yrs. He is now remarrying and our son, who is 15 will be living with me full time. We need to determine child support amount to be paid and get legal papers submitted. Could you tell me how child support is figured? Is it a percentage of salary? Do we need to figure out monthly costs involved? Please let me know how I can proceed in a quick and inexpensive way. Thank you.

Kris responds:

The quickest way to proceed is to consult a Family Lawyer who can advise you in this matter. The Austin Bar Lawyer Referral Service (www.austinlrs.com) 512 472-8303 can recommend a good one.

In response to your questions regarding how child support is determined, there is a section of theThe Family Code, Chapter 154; Child Support Subchapter A that explains how the court will establish the amount of child support to be paid. This represents the minimum required and parents often make adjustments beyond the basic child care support in the best interest of the child.

While the state will mandate the child support dollar amounts, many post divorce, co-parenting teams use mediation as a way to facilitate the details of how child support is to be used and the most effective way to parent a child after divorce and/or remarriage. A family mediator can assist you and your ex-husband in this endeavor. For independent research, please consider the following link to the laws affecting the area of child support.

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/docs/FA/content/htm/fa.005.00.000154.00.htm