IAAL, a question. If the NCP has assumed the majority (orALL of it, like my husband did when he divorced his ex way back when) of marital debt, and uses most of the inheritance to merely pay off long term debt - which as you know is NOT considered when CS is calculated- so they can get back to working a regular 40 hour week and have time to also spend with their kid, is the NCP then considered the "wealthier parent"? Or merely now evenly indebted with the CP who didn't have the debt obligations of the marriage? I'm only talking about 20,000-30,000 here, not a retireable windfall.
After all "wealth" is also what one has left after paying their bills. I know people who now have a rather modest income, but are able to live a wealthier lifestyle in a wealthier neighborhood because of an almost non-existant debt load. I realize CS is calculated on various income sources, and not adjusted for debts, so if debt is removed, are they, for the purposes of CS, "wealthier"?
Of course, I realize that in the one year of reciept, that income would count, but does it count after that if it does not produce an income because it paid off all the long term debt?