Odd Income Rulings
Are Gifts Income
The Styka v. Styka case, I believe, wrongly decided that gifts are not income for child support purposes. 972 P.2d 16 (App. Ct. 1999) cert denied January 6, 1999. The Court ruled that gifts are not income because “In deciding this issue, we look to the language of Section 40-4-11.1. The wording of our statute is more analogous to those in jurisdictions that have not generally included gifts as income.” So, parents have a duty to be fully employed to ensure their children are appropriately cared for, but if you get a $10,000 gift every year, we will not include that as income. The father in Styka alleged that the mother received about $25,000 a year total in family gifts and trust distributions. Per the Court of Appeals, mother has no obligation to use any of that money for the support of her children.
- Overview
- Page One - Child Support Statutes and Full-Employment
- Page Two - Self Employed Individuals and Deductions From Income
- Page Three - Calculating Income and Guaranteeing Income
- Page Four - Miscellaneous Income Rulings