Spousal and Child Support

Under the Administrative Rules of Montana, "every case must be determined on its own merits and circumstances, and the presumption (of the adequacy of the Child Support Guidelines) may be rebutted by evidence that a child's needs are not being met."

So, although the state rules set a basic amount of support according to the child support guidelines, the final amount which is ordered by the court is typically higher, as it may include medical care costs, daycare costs, extracurricular activities, and so on.

An exact amount of child support is calculated based on the Melson formula in Montana. The State Department of Public Health and Human Services provides worksheets and instructions on how to work with this complicated formula.