Child Support
Residency Requirements and Grounds for Divorce
The District of Columbia requires you or your spouse to be a resident for six months before you can file for divorce. If you're in the military, you meet this requirement if you're stationed in Washington, D.C. for six months. Your case begins when you file a Complaint for Divorce in the Family Division of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
A divorce may be granted if either of the following is true:
- Both spouses have mutually and voluntarily lived separate and apart without cohabitation for six months before filing for divorce
- Both spouses have lived separate and apart without cohabitation for a year before filing for divorce
To receive a court-approved divorce you don't need to show the breakdown of the marriage was the fault of one spouse. You just need to prove a breakdown in the marriage and there's no reasonable possibility of saving it.
Dividing the Property
Assets and debts acquired during your marriage - called "marital property" - are divided "equitably" when you divorce. This doesn't always mean an equal division of property. Rather the court looks to make a fair division after considering the following factors:
- Marriage duration
- The age, health, occupation, amount, and sources of income, vocational skills, employability, assets, debts and needs of each spouse
- Child custody in the case
- Whether the distribution is in lieu of or in addition to alimony
- Whether either spouse has any other child support obligations from other relationships
- Prospect for each spouse to earn income and acquire assets
- Contributions by each spouse to the family unit through homemaking or other efforts
- Each spouse's contribution to the education of the other party that enhanced the other spouse's earning ability
- Each spouse's increase or decrease in income as a result of the marriage or duties of homemaking and child care
- Each spouse's contribution to the acquisition, preservation, appreciation, dissipation, or depreciation in value of the assets to be divided. This includes looking at taxation issues related to the property and when it was acquired
- Contributing circumstances to the couple's estrangement
Separate property is retained by the owning spouse. Separate property includes the following:
- Assets you had before marriage if you kept it separate and didn't "commingle" or mix it with marital property
- Income generated by your separate property; the income must have been kept separate as well
- Property inherited from your family during your marriage if willed exclusively to you and you did not commingle it
Be prepared with information on your property, including when you purchased it, an estimate of value, and details such as account numbers, serial numbers and so forth. You'll be ready to meet with a District of Columbia divorce lawyer and it can save you a lot of time and money.
Alimony
The court may require either spouse to pay alimony to the other. There are two alimony types, rehabilitative or indefinite. Rehabilitative alimony is temporary. Indefinite alimony is permanent, ending when either spouse dies.
The court determines the alimony amount and how long it will be paid. In making a decision, the court considers all the relevant factors necessary for a fair and equitable award, including the:
- Ability of the person seeking alimony to be wholly or partly self-supporting
- Time necessary for the person seeking alimony to gain sufficient education or training to enable that spouse to secure suitable employment
- Standard of living that the couple established during their marriage, but giving consideration to the fact that there will be two households to maintain
- Duration of the marriage
- Circumstances which contributed to the breakup
- Age of each spouse
- Physical and mental condition of each spouse
- Ability of the paying spouse to meet his or her needs while paying alimony
- Financial needs and resources of each spouse
A court may modify alimony if there's a change of circumstances.
Child Custody and Visitation
The court will enter an order reflecting the custody arrangement reached by you and your spouse, unless clear and convincing evidence shows it's not in your child's best interest. Otherwise the court makes custody decisions based primarily on the best interest of the child. A custody order may include:
"Legal custody" means legal responsibility for a child. The term "legal custody" includes the right to make decisions regarding that child's health, education and general welfare, the right to access the child's educational, medical, psychological, dental or other records, and the right to speak with and obtain information regarding the child from school officials, health care providers, counselors or other persons interacting with the child.
"Physical custody" means a child's living arrangements. The term "physical custody" includes a child's residency or visitation schedule.
The court's determination of the best interests of the child includes looking at these factors:
- The child's wishes, where practicable
- The parents' custody preferences
- The interaction and interrelationship of the child with parents, siblings and others in his life who may have an emotional or psychological impact
- The child's adjustment to his home, school and community
- The mental and physical health of all individuals involved
- Evidence domestic violence
- Parents' ability to communicate and make joint decisions about their child's welfare
- Parents' willingness to share custody
- The prior involvement of each parent in the child's life
- The potential disruption of the child's social and school life
- Location of parents' homes relative to the child's custody and visitation arrangement
- Demands of parents' jobs
- Number and age of children
- Parents' sincerity in asking for a specific custody arrangement
- Parents' financial ability to support joint custody arrangement
- Impact of government assistance the family members receive
- The benefit of the custody arrangement to the parents
The court also decides visitation issues, and restrictions are possible if there's been domestic violence. The parent who committed the offense must show visitation won't endanger the child. Either the court or the parents can seek changes or termination of custody by motion. Modification requires showing a substantial and material change of circumstances, and that change is in the best interest of the child.
Child Support
District of Columbia Child Support Guidelines are used to calculate child support. The amount is a percentage of the the non-custodial parent's income paid to help support the children. The Guidelines are based on factors including income, number of children and the oldest child's age. Support is generally paid until the child is 21 years old. A child support order, including voluntary agreements, can be modified. If you're seeking a change, you must show a substantial change in the child's needs or ability to pay.
Questions for Your Attorney