Henson v. Carosella (Nebraska 2020)

Child support should be based on parent’s current earnings. The father appealed the child support provision of the final divorce decree. He argued the court’s determination of his income ignored evidence of his actual earnings. The father, an apprentice steamfitter, was about to be qualified as a journeyman. He worked more than 40 hours per week regularly. The court of appeals upheld the child support award. The record contained ample evidence to support the father’s income amount including the father’s answer to a discovery question about his income, his testimony, and his paystubs that were entered as evidence. The father argued he was in the position of having to work to pay support which meant he couldn’t see his child. The appellate court noted the district court included specific language in the decree that provided the order might be eligible for modification if the father started a different work schedule.