Bickel v. Bickel

Citations

• 949 N.W.2d 832
• 2020 ND 212

Syllabus

If the district court finds certain past income is an unreliable indicator of the obligor's future income, the court must explain why the income it utilized in determining the child support obligation was appropriate. If the district court bases a child support obligation on an income earned in less than a 12-month period, the court must explain why it did not utilize the evidence it had to extrapolate an income for a 12-month period. Pursuant to N.D. Admin. Code § 75-02-04.1-02(9), each child support order must include a statement of the net income of the obligor used to determine the child support obligation, and how that net income was determined. Generally, a modification of child support should be made effective from the date of the motion to modify, absent good reason to set some other date. If the district court grants a movant relief on a motion to compel discovery, either in whole or in part, and the movant requests attorney's fees, the court must consider whether an award of attorney's fees is appropriate under N.D.R.Civ.P. 37(a)(5).