Under California's laws, both parents have an obligation to support children. However in the case of a divorce or legal separation, one parent can request the other party for child support payments.

Typically, child support will be calculated based on the following factors:

• It will include the number of children who are involved. Children will include minor children, and child support payments will cover the children until they turn 18 and graduate from high school, or 19 if they are still in high school.
• It will also depend on the amount of time that each parent takes responsibility for the child.
• Obviously, it also depends on the gross income of the parent. Gross income will include not just salaries, but also commissions, royalties, bonuses, rent, wages, pensions, and annuities. If one of the parents has been awarded workers’ compensation benefits, Social Security benefits or disability insurance benefits, then child support payments will include these factors too.
• The parents’ tax liabilities, including the number of dependents, exclusions, deductions and credits are factored in.
• California's child support laws also take into consideration FICA, mandated retirement benefits, health insurance, child support that was paid out by the parent before the court order, and other child support or spousal support payments.
• Besides, parents must also provide additional child support in cases where they will be expected to provide training for employment skills, to cover the special needs of the child, to cover travel costs for visitation or to cover the cost of uninsured healthcare.
• The parent’s financial situation, including medical expenses, catastrophic financial losses, as well as the living expenses of children with another spouse who live with the parent, must also be considered.

However, in order to fully understand how these laws could impact the payments you receive, it's important to speak with an experienced Pasadena child support lawyer.