§48-13-101. Guidelines to ensure uniformity and increase predictability; presumption of correctness.
This article establishes guidelines for child support award amounts so as to ensure greater uniformity by those persons who make child support recommendations and enter child support orders and to increase predictability for parents, children and other persons who are directly affected by child support orders. There is a rebuttable presumption, in any proceeding before a court for the award of child support, that the amount of the award which would result from the application of these guidelines is the correct amount of child support to be awarded.
§48-13-203. Amount determined by guidelines presumed to be correct.
The amount of support resulting from the application of the guidelines is presumed to be the correct amount, unless the court, in a written finding or a specific finding on the record, disregards the guidelines or adjusts the award as provided for in section 13-702.
§48-13-701. Rebuttable presumption that child support award is correct.
The guidelines in child support awards apply as a rebuttable presumption to all child support orders established or modified in West Virginia. The guidelines must be applied to all actions in which child support is being determined including temporary orders, interstate (URESA and UIFSA), domestic violence, foster care, divorce, nondissolution, public assistance, nonpublic assistance and support decrees arising despite nonmarriage of the parties. The guidelines must be used by the court as the basis for reviewing adequacy of child support levels in uncontested cases as well as contested hearings.
