Child Support

The issue of child support can be handled in several different courts in Florida, either by itself, or as part of a separate family law case. Article V, Sections 5 and 6 of the Florida Constitution grant the circuit and county courts jurisdiction to hear cases prescribed by general law. Article V, Section 1 of the Florida Constitution grants administrative officers quasi-judicial power in matters connected with the functions of their offices. Rule 12.491, Fla. Fam. L. R. P., applies to the proceedings for establishment, enforcement, or modification of child support when a party seeking support is receiving services pursuant to Title IV-D of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. §§651 et. seq.) and to non -Title IV-D proceedings upon administrative order of the chief justice.

1. Child Support Legal Outline

2. Income Withholding

  1. Federal IWO Instructions (2021).
  2. Federal IWO form 0970-0154 (2023). After clicking on the link to open the PDF please save it your device (computer, tablet, phone) in order to enable the fillable attributes of the form.
  3. Sample IWO form with numbered fields that correspond to the numbers in the instructions. (2021)
  4. Income withholding flowchart.
  5. Click here for the NCJFCJ benchcards.
  6. The How to Complete an Income Withholding for Support Order Guide was created in 2021 by the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement gives step-by-step instructions for how to fill out the income withholding form.

3. Hearing checklists

  1. Child support Hearing Officer Colloquy
  2. Motion for Contempt Checklist
  3. Petition for Paternity Checklist
  4. Petition for Superseding Order Checklist
  5. Petition for Support Checklist
  6. Petition to Modify Child Support Checklist

4. Promising practices - Child Support in Dependency Cases

According to the principles of unified family court as described in In re Report of Family Court Steering Committee, 794 So. 2d 518 (Fla. 2001), the best practice is to handle the child support matter before the same judge hearing the dependency case to avoid conflicting orders and multiple court appearances by the parties, as well as to increase efficiency and wisely utilize court resources. Please note: Section 39.521(1)(d)(7), Florida Statutes, states: “The court may exercise jurisdiction over all child support matters, shall adjudicate the financial obligation, including health insurance, of the child’s parents or guardian, and shall enforce the financial obligation as provided in chapter 61.” For more information, read the child support section of the Dependency Benchbook.

5. Promising practices – Child Support in Domestic Violence Cases

For more information, read the child support section of the Domestic Violence Benchbook.

6. Helpful Resources:

How to Utilize the Department of Revenue Child Support Excel Spreadsheet

Watch this Dec. 2021 webinar to hear DOR staff teach users how to properly fill in and interpret the data from their regularly updated Excel worksheet. While primarily designed for judicial officers, lawyers, court staff, and other interested stakeholders may also want to watch this webinar if they are using the DOR spreadsheet to determine child support.

Eligible mediators can claim 1.2 CME's by contacting DRCmail@flcourts.org. Eligible attorneys can claim 1 CLE hour by contacting the Florida Bar and referencing Course #2110102N. CJE's have been requested.

If you are a judicial officer and need the latest version of the excel spreadsheet to use from the bench, please contact the virtual court support at vcsupport@flcourts.org.

Family Court in Florida