Oklahoma Child Support Guidelines Have an Exception
Video Transcribed: Do the Oklahoma Child Support Guidelines have to be followed in a family law case in Oklahoma? I’m Tulsa attorney, James Wirth. We’re doing a series of videos related to Oklahoma child support, and that’s the question that we have today related to the Oklahoma Child Support Guidelines, do they have to be followed? And the answer can be found statutorily, Title 43, Section 118H. And essentially, what it says is that yes, they do have to be followed, but there is an exception.
So first, it says, “No deviation in the amount of child support obligation shall be made, which seriously impairs the ability of the obligee in the case under consideration to maintain minimally adequate housing, food, and clothing of the children being supported.” So you have to follow the guidelines if that’s what’s required to maintain minimally adequate housing, food, and clothing for the children.
However, it notes an exception where the court may deviate from the child support guidelines under limited exceptions, where they are documented as far as the reasoning, what findings are the court making in making that determination? So that’s what the law says. And the next video is going to cover the specific circumstances, and what has to be shown to the court in order to deviate from the child support guidelines. But practically speaking, judges do not like deviating from the guidelines.
The guidelines are simple. It gives everybody an idea of what to expect. And the law makes it difficult to deviate from them. So 99% of your judges are going to go along with the child support guidelines, 99% of the time.
So to answer the question, do you have to follow the guidelines? You almost always do, but there are exceptions where you can deviate from what we’re going to cover in the next video. If you’re dealing with a child support issue in Oklahoma though, you’re going to want to talk to an attorney about that, privately, confidentially. To get that scheduled with a Tulsa Child Support Collection Attorney at my office. You can go online to makelaweasy.com.
