Important Issue Of Child Support

Divorce is never easy. Seeing a relationship unravel before your own eyes can take its toll both emotionally and spiritually. But, it is probably hardest for the child. Many a time the child takes the blame for the failed relationship on himself. It is at a time like this that he needs your support and assurances. No matter how bad the time is, you have to put aside your own grief to see your child through. However here, we will strictly be discussing Child Support in financial and legal terms instead of emotional terms.When two parents separate, it is often determined that a child will primarily reside with one of the separated parents. In those situations, the parent keeping the child will incur most of the child-related expenses: food, accommodation, clothing, groceries, utilities, transportation, school, lessons etc.To reflect that inequity, the common law has established that each parent has a legal obligation to support their child, financially speaking. No law has made any rules regarding the fulfilling the emotional needs of the child. A strictly legal definition of child support is “Periodic money payments payable by a non-custodial parent, to the custodial parent, for the care of his or her minor child.” For those who don’t speak law, custodial parent is the one keeping the child while non custodial parent will be the one making the periodic payments.For the parent who does not have the child living with him, this means equally or fairly contributing to their child's expenses and needs. This is done by requiring that parent to make monthly or other periodic (rarely a lump sum or annual payment) to the other parent as a contribution towards the expenses of raising a child.Initially, costs were split fifty-fifty between the parents. But over time complex systems have been established to determine the payments that need to be made keeping in mind the income of both parents and the number of children.There are unique rules to deal with children who are no longer minors, and have special or extraordinary needs or expenses, and when a child or the children spend close to equal time with, and maintain residence in the homes of, both parents. Child Support  as an issue is so important that the right to child support and the responsibilities of parents to provide such support has been internationally recognized. In fact, during the 1992 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, a binding convention was signed by every member of the UN declaring that “the upbringing and development of children and a standard of living adequate for the children's development is a common responsibility of both parents and a fundamental human right for children”. The convention further asserted that the primary responsibility to provide such for the children rests with their parents.Well it’s nice to know that apart form endorsing wars, the UN has also taken the time to take care of the children!