By Mary Kate Moss
If you think the process and cost of a child support order is frustrating, consider the personal and financial cost of not having one. When you are married and residing in the same household with your spouse, you share the expense of raising your children and providing for their needs, but how is that shared once you two no longer live under the same roof?
When you and your significant other separate each parent is responsible for their own rent or mortgage, utilities, and any other expenses needed to keep a roof over their families head. Often, one party earns more than the other and parenting time is not always equal. Child support provides a method to allocate the income of the parties such that each parent is contributing to the financial cost of raising their child or children, and providing for their basic needs. Without setting a child support order, one parent could end up being the sole financial support for the children.
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