Child Support Enforcement - Sarpy County Nebraska

adduce evidence of any inequity that might occur as the result of crediting those
benefits to court-ordered child support.
Brodrick v. Baumgarten, 19 Neb. App. 228, ___ N.W.2d ____ (Sept. 2011)
Facts: parties modify their support order and indicate the new support amount is an upward
deviation from the guidelines. Five months later dad files to modify support back to what the
guidelines would have set it at ($0). District court finds a material change in financial
circumstances despite the fact the parents‘ incomes are exactly the same.
Held: No modification is warranted. Parties cannot use a prior deviation from the guidelines as
THE grounds to re-modify to a support amount with no deviation when nothing else changes.
A party seeking to modify a child support order must show a material change in
circumstances which (1) occurred subsequent to the entry of the original decree or
previous modification and (2) was not contemplated when the decree was entered.
Among the factors to be considered in determining whether a material change of
circumstances has occurred are (1) changes in the financial position of the parent
obligated to pay support, (2) the needs of the children for whom support is paid, (3)
good or bad faith motive of an obligated parent in sustaining a reduction in income,
and (4) whether the change is temporary or permanent.
Brooks v. Brooks, 261 Neb. 289, 622 N.W.2d 670 (2001)
There is no precise mathematical formula for calculating child support when subsequent
children are involved.
The calculation is left to the discretion of the court as long as the court considered
the obligations to both families and the income of the other parent of the subsequent
children.
The party requesting a deviation from the guidelines based upon an obligation to
support offspring of a subsequent relationship bears the burden of providing
evidence regarding the obligation, including the income of the other parent of the
child or children of the subsequent relationship.
Claborn v. Claborn, 267 Neb. 201, 673 N.W.2d 533 (2004)
A divorce decree does not require a parent to remaining the same employment, and
child support may be calculated based on actual income when a career change is
made in good faith.
If applicable, earning capacity may be considered in lieu of a parent‘s actual,
present income and may include factors such as work history, education,
occupational skills, and job opportunities.
Child support may be based on a parent‘s earning capacity when a parent voluntarily
leaves employment and a reduction in that parent‘s support obligation would
seriously impair the needs of the children
Earning capacity may be used as a basis for an initial determination of child support
under the Nebraska Child Support Guidelines where evidence is presented that the
parent is capable of realizing such capacity through reasonable effort.
Crawford v. Crawford, 263 Neb. 37, 263 Neb. 37 (2002)
Modification of a dissolution decree and the amount of child support are matters
entrusted to the trial court‘s discretion, and although the issue on appeal is reviewed
de novo on the record, the decision of the trial court will be affirmed absent an
abuse of discretion
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