Louisiana divorce laws

Child Support

Are you curious about how Louisiana computes child support? The state of Louisiana is one of 37 states that use the "Income Shares" model. The Income Shares Model is based on the concept that the child should receive the same proportion of parental income that he or she would have received if the parents lived together. In an intact household, the income of both parents is generally pooled and spent for the benefit of all household members, including any children. These guidelines are presumed to be in the best interest of the children. Considerations include the needs of the child and the resources of each parent. Access details of Louisiana family law via our state laws page.

In order to compute a child support obligation, you'll each be required to provide to the court a verified income statement showing gross income, adjusted gross income and documentation of current and past earnings. Should a request be made for a detail of household expenses, you must provide the source of payments of household expenses.

In the past, some spouses have been known to quit jobs or get lower-paying jobs in order to have the basis for computing child support (or alimony) be lower. You might say those days are behind us. If one is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, his or her gross income will be imputed (estimated and assigned) based on state guidelines. The days of one parent quitting their job and getting a lower paying one just to have payments lowered is pretty much over.

Child support is determined by the parties combining their adjusted gross incomes. This effectively takes more from the obligor. Each party then determines by percentage his or her proportionate share of the combined amount. The amount obtained for each party is his or her percentage share of the combined adjusted gross income.

Residency

Whomever files the petition for divorce must be a resident for at least 12 months prior to that filing. The divorce will be filed in the parish in which either spouse resides.

Child Custody

Louisiana courts presume that joint custody of the children is in the children's best interest, unless conditions exist to modify that. Traditionally Mothers have been awarded custody in most cases, but courts are now giving Fathers primary custody in greater numbers. Today Fathers get custody of their children about 20% of the time. In determining the child's best interest, the court will consider all relevant factors, which may include:

1. The love, affection, and other emotional ties between each parent and the child.
2. The ability of each party to give the child love, affection, and spiritual guidance and to continue the education and rearing of the child.
3. The ability of each party to provide the child with food, clothing, medical care, and other material needs.
4. The length of time the child has lived in a stable, adequate environment, and the desirability of maintaining continuity of that environment.
5. The permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or proposed custodial home or homes.
6. The moral fitness of each party
7. The mental and physical health of each parent.
8. The home, school, and community history of the child.
9. The reasonable preference of the child, if the court deems the child to be of sufficient age to express a preference.
10. The ability of each party to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing relationship between the child and the other party.
11. The distance between the respective residences of the parties.
12. The responsibility for the care and rearing of the child previously exercised by each party.

If the parents agree who is to have custody, the court will award custody in that manner unless the best interest of the child requires a different award. Should they not agree, or if the agreement is not in the best interest of the child, the court will award custody to the parents jointly; however, if custody in one parent is shown by clear and convincing evidence to serve the best interest of the child, the court will award custody to that parent.

The court has the latitude to award custody to another person with whom the child has been living in a wholesome and stable environment if it deems such an order is in the best interest of the child.

A parent not granted custody or joint custody of a child is entitled to reasonable visitation rights unless the court finds, after a hearing, that visitation would not be in the best interest of the child.

The court may order an evaluation of a party or the child in a custody or visitation proceeding for good cause shown. The evaluation will be made by a mental health professional selected by the parties or by the court. The court may render judgment for costs of the evaluation, or any part thereof, against any party or parties, as it may consider equitable.

The court may order a party or the child to submit to and cooperate in the evaluation, testing, or interview by the mental health professional. The mental health professional will provide the court and the parties with a written report. The mental health professional will serve as the witness of the court, subject to cross-examination by a party.

Grounds for Divorce

Louisiana divorce statutes allow that a divorce will be granted by the court on No-Fault Grounds if the spouses have lived separate and apart continuously for at least one hundred eighty days prior to the filing.

In fault petitions, a spouse to a covenant marriage may obtain a judgment of divorce only with proof of any of the following:

1. The other spouse has committed adultery.
2. The other spouse has committed a felony and has been sentenced to death or imprisonment at hard labor.
3. The other spouse has abandoned the marital home for a period of one year and constantly refuses to return.
4. The other spouse has physically or sexually abused the spouse seeking the divorce or a child of one of the spouses.
5. The spouses have been living separate and apart continuously without reconciliation for a period of two years.
6. The spouses have been living separate and apart continuously without reconciliation for a period of one year from the date the judgment of separation from bed and board (legal separation) was signed.

Mediation

In petitions involving children, the court can order the parties to mediate their differences. A mediator can be agreed upon by the parties, or the court will appoint one. The court can continue the proceedings to allow time for mediation to be achieved. If an agreement is reached by the parties, the mediator will prepare a written, signed, and dated agreement. The agreement will then be submitted to the court for its approval.

In a proceeding in which joint custody is decreed, the court will render a joint custody implementation order except for good cause shown. The implementation order will allocate the time periods during which each parent will have physical custody of the child so that the child is assured of frequent and continuing contact with both parents. The court will designate the primary custodial home. All major decisions will be made by custodial parent and subject to the court's review.

Alimony           

The consideration of alimony by the court will include who is entitled, the amount to be paid and the duration of alimony payments. Factors that the court may consider are: 1.) The needs of the parties, 2.) The income and means of the parties, including the liquidity of such means, 3.) The financial obligations of the parties, 4.) The earning capacity of the parties, 5.) The effect of custody of children upon a party's earning capacity, 6.) The time necessary for the claimant to acquire appropriate education, training, or employment, 7.) The health and age of the parties, 8.) The duration of the marriage and 9.)

The sum awarded as alimony can not exceed one-third of the payer's net income. In Louisiana, there are two types of Alimony/Spousal Support.

1. Temporary Support: Awarded to a spouse who does not have sufficient income for his or her maintenance pending the divorce. The most important factor considered by the court is the standard of living which existed during the marriage.

2. Post-Divorce Spousal Support (a.k.a. "Permanent Alimony"): Post-Divorce Spousal Support is designed to provide the needy ex-spouse with the basic necessities of life. Post-Divorce Spousal Support can be awarded to an ex-spouse who is found to be free from fault in the breakdown of the marriage and does not have sufficient means for his or her own support. The fault of the paying party is not relevant to the issue of spousal support. However, the receiving spouse must show that he or she is not at fault. There are no hard statutory rules defining "fault" for purposes of spousal support-- the determination is left to the court, based on the authority of previous cases and some guidance from the civil code.

Waiting Period       

Except in the case of a covenant marriage, a divorce will be granted when either spouse has filed a petition for divorce and upon proof that one hundred eighty days have elapsed from the service of the petition, or from a written waiver that the spouses have lived separate and apart continuously for at least one hundred eighty days prior to the filing.

Grandparents Rights

If one of the parties to a marriage with children dies or is imprisoned, the parents of that party may have reasonable visitation rights to the child or children of the marriage during their minority. Motions before the court need to be made to effect this. Best interest of the child or children prevails.

Divorce Settlement

Louisiana is known as a Community Property state. Community property is defined as all property that was acquired during the marriage. This property will be divided equally (50-50) by the court if the parties are not able to come to an agreement. Non-marital assets such as gifts, inheritances, and property owned prior to the marriage will remain with each spouse and then all other property will be split equally. The court may consider the following: