Imputed Income
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Imputed Income
| Thu, 07-07-2005 - 12:36pm |
Does this sound fair? We are in divorce mediation..getting to the meat of things..H wants a separation instead. Says with our latest calcualtions. My imputed income will be about 40K.
40K?? I am make $5200 right now..I figured 20K??? I did earn 50K before my kids..I have been out of the full time workforce for over 10yrs..This has to be a scare tactic..
Any thoughts? I have two school age kids.
40K?? I am make $5200 right now..I figured 20K??? I did earn 50K before my kids..I have been out of the full time workforce for over 10yrs..This has to be a scare tactic..
Any thoughts? I have two school age kids.

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I can see 5 yrs from now working towards 40K. Not in the immed future. I see 20K possibly with my job or another. Am I way off base here?
What does your attorney say? That is what matters more.
They don't impute income based on what your ex thinks you should be making. They come up with what someone with your skills and your experience should be earning. If you are working and making $5,200 per year, then your argument should be that your income used in the child support calculation should be $5,200 per year (and that it can be recomputed if and when you start earning more). Your ex can make the arguement that it should be higher, but he will have to demonstrate with evidence (not ideas) that you can get a job earning that.
Income is more often imputed when someone is working and quits (or is fired or downsized) and then takes a lower paying job when they are clearly qualified for a job at the same salary they used to make. I don't think they will use the salary you made ages ago when you had current and relevant work experience. The best thing is to have an attorney to counter his argument. If you are going through mediation without attorney's, then bring your paystubs to the mediator. If you STBX argues for $40K to be used as your income, then have some printouts of job listings in your back pocket that you can pull out, showing what you should be able to earn with your qualifications plus your current paystubs showing what you are making. If that's $20k, then that's what it is, the mediator will have to make the call and decide who has better evidence of what the right salary for you will be.
What your Stbx says in negotiations, and what a court would decide are two VERY different things. In negotiation, of course he is going to say all the things that will best suit HIS side.
Why would he want only a separation? Does he have strong religious objections to divorce? Does he plan on winning you back? Does he really want to pay all the professionals twice, once for a separation agreement and then again later for a divorce? Sounds to me like you should go ahead with the divorce now.
You have to be strong in the negotiations. Every time he says $50K, laugh and tell him that you read the want ads today and couldn't find one single job you were qualified for that paid the federal minimum wage. Show him that you are as strong as he is. You have to start off way low, and he has to start off high, so that you two can meet in the middle. Good luck.
Do you trust him to repeat what the mediator said correctly, and not to twist it just to freak you out? Do you know if maybe he told the mediator *you* thought $40k was reasonable? Perhaps the mediator doesn't know your experience or skill level, and is basing this on misinformation.
The first question I would have would be directly to the mediator to find out what facts the mediator does or does not have. Imputed income is not a calculation that stands alone, it's based on what you are capable of earning and can be affected by many factors, and if you aren't qualified for $40k jobs then your imputed income should not be $40k, period. The worst case will be the mediator makes his/her determination and you have to go to court to fight it. I wouldn't do that without an attorney, and getting an attorney now would be better because it will be better to change the mediator's mind with convincing evidence now than it will be to fight the meditors decision in front of a judge later (not sure exactly how the process works in your state though, if you have to accept the mediators decision at all or if you disagree maybe you go directly to court).
At a minimum you could provide the mediator with any relevant job search information you can find to demonstrate your actual earning capacity. You do have the ability to sway his opinion on this (or at least the right to try).
I also have to find out if legal separation in an option in NJ. May be a help as far as auto insurance and health benefits etc. My H had the idea. he also had the idea to separate and it's not legal and binding. Whatever works better he says...Hilarious.
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