CHILD SUPPORT - GOING OVER THE CAP?

This I found to be common in many "middle class" divorce settlements and/or litigations: computing child support and whether or not to go over the cap. The Combined Parental Income Cap is currently $154,000.

Marino v. Marino, 2020 NY Slip Op 2922 , Appellate Div., 2nd Dept. May 20, 2020:

""In determining parental income under the [Child Support Standards Act], the court must begin with the parent's gross (total) income as should have been or should be reported in the most recent federal income tax return'" (Matter of Peddycoart v MacKay, 145 AD3d at 1082, quoting Family Ct Act § 413[1][b][5][i]). "When the parties' combined income is more than the statutory cap . . . [,] the court has the discretion to cap the support obligation at an amount based on the statutory cap or order child support above the statutory cap'" (Matter of Spano v Spano, 168 AD3d 857, 859, quoting Matter of Santman v Schonfeldt, 159 AD3d 914, 915). The factors to be considered in making this determination "include a consideration of the financial resources of the custodial and noncusodial parent, and the standard of living the child would have enjoyed if the parties had remained together" (Matter of Peddycoart v MacKay, 145 AD3d at 1084). Here, it was not an improvident exercise of discretion to deny the plaintiff's request to exceed the statutory combined parental income cap to determine the defendant's child support obligation. The Supreme Court considered, inter alia, the financial resources of both parties, taking into account that the plaintiff's income is greater than the defendant's income, most of which is imputed income, that the defendant was denied a maintenance award, and that the children have significant expenses to which the parties must contribute."