Imputing Income–Ability and Opportunity to Earn

This video discusses imputing income in general in a California child support case.

When the Court imputes income to a party, the Court is setting child support as though the party earns an income that the party does not actually earn. This is often done when a party is unemployed or underemployed (not earning at his or her potential).

Parties in child support cases often want income imputed to the other party. It’s not uncommon for the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS) to ask that income be imputed to one or both parties. This article looks at the requirements for the Court to impute income to a party.

Jessica Ryan Keeney is licensed to practice law in the State of California. She is the Department of Child Support Services (aka DCSS) attorney for Lassen County and Plumas County (two small, rural California counties). She has practiced family law since December of 2009, when she was sworn in as an attorney in California. Before that, she worked as a law student for a family law attorney starting at the end of her second year of law school until she graduated from law school (a four-year law school program). She was a City Attorney for a small rural city in California for just shy of 5 years.

This video is not legal advice. This video is for educational purposes only. Neither Jessica Ryan Keeney nor Lassen County Department of Child Support Services, nor Plumas County Department of Child Support Services, nor anyone else can guarantee or be responsible for the outcome of your case.

Family Code section 4058(b): https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa....

In re Marriage of Berger 170 Cal.App.4th 1070 (Cal. Ct. App. 2009)

In re Marriage of Bardzik 165 Cal.App.4th 1291 (Cal. Ct. App. 2008)

McHugh v. McHugh (In re Marriage of Mchugh) 231 Cal.App.4th 1238 (Cal. Ct. App. 2014)

In re Marriage of Simpson 4 Cal.4th 225 (Cal. 1992)

In re Marriage of Smith, 225 Cal.App.3d 469 (Cal. Ct. App. 1990)

In re Marriage of Regnery (1989) 214 Cal.App.3d 1367 [ 263 Cal.Rptr. 243]

In re Marriage of Eggers 131 Cal.App.4th 695 (Cal. Ct. App. 2005)

In re Marriage of Padilla (1995) 38 Cal.App.4th 1212 [ 45 Cal.Rptr.2d 555]

State of Oregon v. Vargas, 70 Cal.App.4th 1123 (Cal. Ct. App. 1999)

Although the following links are not mentioned in this video, they link to information that is often helpful in IV-D child support and family law matters.

Copies of California Judicial Council forms can be found at https://www.courts.ca.gov/formname.htm.

Date Time Calculator is available at https://www.timeanddate.com/date/date...

CSDA Attorney Sourcebook, AKA DCSS Sourcebook, AKA Child Support Bible can be purchased at: https://csdaca.org/product-category/p...

California Statutes Including the Family Code: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...

California Child Support Services: childsupport.ca.gov

Lassen County Department of Child Support Services: http://lassencounty.org/dept/departme...

For more resources visit Jessica Ryan Keeney’s web page at: https://jessicaryankeeneylaw.myfreesi...