Minyard v. Lindseth

**What Happened** This case involved a dispute over child support payments between Minyard and Lindseth in North Dakota. Lindseth challenged how the court calculated his income when determining his monthly child support obligation. He disagreed with the court's method for figuring out how much money he actually made, which directly affected how much child support he would have to pay. **What the Court Decided** The North Dakota Supreme Court upheld the lower court's decision requiring Lindseth to pay $1,216 per month in child support. The court rejected his appeal and confirmed that the income calculation method used was proper. The court emphasized that income must be well-documented using tax returns, recent pay stubs, and other reliable financial records. For self-employed individuals, courts should use an average of the most recent five years of self-employment earnings when that information is available. **Why This Matters for Workers** This ruling is important for workers because it clarifies how courts calculate income for child support purposes. If you're self-employed or have irregular income, courts will look at your five-year earnings history rather than just recent months. This means you need to keep thorough financial records, as courts require solid documentation of your actual earnings, not just what you claim to make.