Defendant's Attorney:

Description: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania family law lawyers represented the parties in a divorce case.

Batterman and Silvia Santo ("Santo") were married on November 29, 2014, and separated three years later. The parties have two children, born in October 2015 and October 2017. In December 2017, Santo filed a complaint for child support. On June 22, 2018, the trial court entered a final child support order calculating Batterman's monthly child support obligation for the two children to be $686.00 per month. On October 1, 2018, Batterman filed a petition to modify the support order. Following protracted proceedings during which Batterman filed another petition to modify the order and,
separately, was found in contempt of the support order,[1] the trial court entered an order on February 20, 2020, directing Batterman to pay $674.48 per month for the support of his two children.

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FAMILY LAW. CHILD SUPPORT CONTEMPT. The case addresses an appeal by a father found in contempt of a child support order, focusing on the trial court's assessment of his ability to pay, his reliance on parental financial assistance, and the adequacy of his healthcare-related claims for exemption from compliance.

FAMILY LAW. CHILD SUPPORT INCOME DETERMINATION. The court considered whether parental financial assistance, not classified as income under statutory definitions, could be factored into evaluating a parent's financial ability to fulfill child support obligations.

CIVIL PROCEDURE. WAIVER OF CLAIMS ON APPEAL. The judgment discusses the procedural aspect of waiver, emphasizing that issues not raised at trial or inadequately presented in appellate documentation are deemed waived for appellate review.

JUDICIAL CONDUCT. ALLEGATION OF BIAS AND RECUSAL. The appellant's claim of judicial bias and failure to obtain recusal was deemed waived due to not being raised appropriately in the trial court, and the court also found the conduct of the trial judge to be within discretionary bounds.

Key Phrases Child support order. Civil contempt petition. Earning capacity. Financial resources. Parental obligation.

Outcome: Affirmed

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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