Divorce can be complicated enough on its own, even if you and your spouse don’t have any children. If you do, it grows even more complex, and this reaches a whole new level if you have a child with special needs. Below are a few things that you should know about this process in Florida.
1. Child support may be ordered for life.
Child support typically ends when the child becomes an adult, but a child with special needs may need care for the rest of his or her life. As such, the parent who is ordered to make child support payments may also be told to pay forever, as the need for care will not end just because the child turns 18.
2. Payments may be far higher than normal.
In some cases, the child support payments can be drastically higher than normal, just because it usually costs more to care for a child with special needs. For example, in one case, a man was told to pay $2,800 every month. In a standard case, he may have only been told to pay about a third of that amount.
3. Modifications are possible.
Those who are ordered to pay may be able to seek modifications at some points. For example, the man from the above example did this when his daughter turned 18, even though he had been told to pay for life. One of his arguments was that she could get money from both Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income since she was an adult.
If you’re going through a divorce in Florida, be sure you know about your rights and obligations regarding special needs children.