Dennis Quaid's Unique Child Support Request: An Insight Into Celebrity Obligations

It's not unusual to read about a celebrity asking a judge to change their child support obligations. But Dennis Quaid has gone significantly against the grain with his recent request to actually increase his monthly payment, according to a TMZ report. And while he is indeed asking the court to increase his monthly child support payment, he's also seeking to avoid a potentially "astronomical" increase that he could be looking at after a more lucrative-than-normal 2019 for the actor.

Quaid's current arrangement calls for $13,750 a month from him for his kids with ex-wife Kimberly Quaid, Zoe and Thomas. But a clause in the agreement stipulates that Quaid's obligation will increase if his annual income exceeds $1.3 million. This has placed him in a unique situation where he is both requesting an increase while trying to limit how much more he has to pay.

He claims that he has had a successful year, having made over $6 million in 2019, which raises the question of how much his child support payments will actually increase. The current child support agreement, signed in 2018, calls for a percentage of his earnings above $1.3 million to be added onto the amount due. Quaid is now hoping the court will set a "below-guideline child support order based on the reasonable needs of Thomas and Zoe," which indicates he wants the payment to increase, but not as dramatically as the existing formula might suggest.

In case you're interested, Quaid's prosperous 2019 came courtesy of a few different projects. He has secured his Esurance commercial gig, along with roles in films like A Dog's Purpose and Merry Happy Whatever, as well as the third season of the Amazon original series Goliath. Now, a judge will have to decide just how much of that money will end up going to Quaid's ex-wife and kids.