Child Support Legal Questions

The question does not have sufficient facts to permit a detailed answer.  If you have tried calling the caseworker assigned to your case at the D.A.'s office and not received a satisfactory answer, you should call a family law specialist and explain the question in a bit more detail to decide whether, and if so what, might be done in the situation.... Read More

If you have an order for child support for those ten years, the court should have taken the court-ordered arrearage into account. If you are saying there wasn't an order, but he just never paid, then you have to get an order for that back support. That should have been done during the hearing(s) on your current support, but it's not automatic. You would have had to file and serve your own petition for that to happen.... Read More

As an active duty servicemember, you are automatically entitled to adjourn the legal proceedings under the Servicemember Civil Relief Act (a federal law) and its NYS analog. Most services, however, in their regs, require servicemembers to make provisions for the care and support of their family members so that it does not distract them from their military duties.... Read More

Thank you for your question. SSDI payments may eligible for garnishment to fulfill child support obligations in the event that child support payments are in arrears. In addition, if the SSDI qualifier is entitled to a lump sum of back pay and past-due child support is owed, a percentage of this may also be garnished to satisfy the support obligation. Whether or not your children will be eligible for auxiliary benefits under SSDI depends on a variety of factors including the qualifier’s age and the children’s ages. All of these factors and more can have a bearing on giving you a specific answer. To help you understand your rights and options, I encourage you to schedule an attorney consultation. ... Read More

Thank you for your question. Depending on the context of the letter, you may be able to clear up the issue with the Probation division directly. However, if that does not work, you can always execute a new agreement with the other party stating that no arrears are owed.  Based on your circumstances, it would be best to contact an experienced family law attorney to address your specific concerns.... Read More

Yes, proof of income is necessary to calculate child support and for certain other relief. There is Rule 12.285 Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure that requires an exchange of documents within 45 days after service of the pleadings.  This might be in effect in your case depending on what the underlying action is.... Read More

There are two basic choices -- you can go through the D.A., which is free, and can work interstate for enforcement, but is notoriously slow and inefficient.  Or you can hire private counsel, which is typically much faster, but costs money, and could require hiring a lawyer in the original state to reduce arrears to judgment, and then a lawyer in Texas to seek enforcement.  Custody can be brouight up at any time, but he would have a hard time convincing the court on the facts you assert that there is a good reason to do so, although courts will always encourage both parents to have a relaitonship with their child, if possible. If you cannot afford counsel, the local Pro Bono provider is the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada, which can be called at 702-386-1070 (or see their information on the web at http://www.lacsn.org/option,com_jcalpro/Itemid,3/extmode,view/extid,15/).  Those that take pro bono cases take them after they have been screened, and assigned, by Legal Aid.  The Reduced Fee Panel sponsored by the State Bar can be reached at 702-382-2200.  Additionally, there are free consultations offered on Thursdays at the self-help center; volunteer attorneys provide 15-minute consultations, for free, on family law questions.  For those that wish to attempt self-representation, forms are available at the Clark County self-help center website, at http://www.familylawselfhelpcenter.org/.... Read More

Short answer: it depends.  There are two aspects here -- civil and criminal.  On the civil side, see the materials posted here, here, and here, and then I suggest conferring with a qualified family law specialist about matters of paternity, custody, and support.  On the criminal side, I would suggest calling Metro and making a police report, after which the outcome is no longer your responsibility.... Read More

Dear Anonymous:   There are more factors to be considered in computing child support than you have provided information on. As such, it would be inappropriate to guestimate a child support number.  It is commendable you did research on this topic.   Many people also research health issues before seeing a doctor.  However,  as with the medical field, people typically do not treat themselves.   The best thing for you to do is to at least have a consultation with an attorney so the attorney can ask you all the pertinent questions he/she would need to best advise you and then provide answer to your  questions.  If the father wants to have timesharing with his child, a case through DOR will, at best, only establish a limited timesharing schedule.  An hour with an attorney can explain to you how to get more timesharing as it is not as simple as just showing up for the DOR hearing. After you consult with an attorney then you will be in a better position to determine if full represnetation is worth it for you.   Best of luck, Cindy S. Vova Law Offices of Cindy S. Vova, P.A.  Broward/Boca Raton 954-316-3496/561-962-2785  ... Read More

You do not actually ask a question.  As of February 1, the new child support regulations kick in.  We will shortly be posting a recap of the new law; for the law effective through January, see here.  We have posted a free calculator for figuring out what an obligation should be under the new regulations.  You should probably consult, as soon as possible, with a family law specialist.... Read More

Thank you for your question. I am not sure I understand the question because I don’t know if the “tax garnishment in place” is for child support.  However please be advised that Social security benefits and Social security Disability Insurance (SSDI) can be garnished to pay child support and alimony obligations including back taxes and no-tax debt owed to a federal agency such as student loans and federally funded home loans.  It is important that you are aware what orders are in place and if you can’t make certain payments that you seek the help of an attorney to file a motion in court to lower payment in order to try to avoid garnishments.... Read More

The answer is "maybe" and the first thing to review would be your existing court order.  If it calls for production of tax returns, etc., then that is the controlling order.  If not, she has no per se right to your financial documents, and the court rules state that a party has to ask to open post-trial discovery.  That said, cooperation might be less expensive than litigation.  Another complication is that the applicale child support statutes change in just a few days (February 1, 2020).  We will be updating the information posted on our child support page, here, quite soon, to reflect those changes. It seems very likely that your best course of action would be to consult with a family law specialist well versed in this subject, and decide how to proceed based on a full anlysis of your existing orders, and current facts and circumstances.... Read More

that's a pretty interesting situation!   the simple answer is that you may have to continue to pay child support for your daughter, but the baby's father should be paying child support for the baby.  you may want to consult with an expereinced family court lawyer to assist you in this matter. best of luck. susan pearlstein... Read More

Thank you for your question. I understand how worried you must be to navigate your options in connection with the support of your daughter. The short answer is possibly, however, such is fact sensitive. I encourage you to contact a family law attorney who has experience with emancipation matters so that you can understand the implications and next steps.  ... Read More

If he is at least one month behind, you can ask the Texas Attorney General's office to file for enforcement.  Go to  https://childsupport.oag.state.tx.us/wps/portal/CSIMobile/MobileCSIHome/!ut/p/a1/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfGjzOJ9_H1MDN1NjHwsPA1NDRwDfILNnD18DQ0MDfULsh0VAXHbQ8M!/  and click on the button to "Request Services."    The AG is slower than a private attorney, but they do not charge for their services.... Read More

Short answer based upon the facts provided in your question, the paternity for the minor child has most likely not been established and no obligations would fall upon you, but the way the courts are in Louisiana you should bring a disavowal action to determine whether or not you are the father of the child. Since the Louisiana legislature amended the family law portions of the civil code in 2016, signing of the birth certificate no longer establishes legal paternity. If you and your ex never married, the only way those parental rights and obligations would fall to you is if you had executed an act of acknowledgement of paternity of the minor child. In a perfect world where the application of the statutes were strictly applied, you wouldn’t have to go to court to contest paternity and possible child support. Yet, this is not a perfect world, any person can file anything in a court to have it heard, and your ex may bring an action to establish child support even though paternity has not been established. In such a case you would be forced to not only contest the establishment of child support, but to also contest the paternity. All that said your issue can be resolved. It will require what is called a "disavowal action" and, if she is unwilling to submit the child to a DNA test, a court will order it. Under Louisiana Civil Code Article 187, you may disavow paternity of the child by a showing of clear and convincing evidence that you are not the father. Testimony alone will not be sufficient and will need to be corroborated by other evidence, like a DNA test. Under article 189, the action for disavowal of paternity must be brought within one year from the day of the birth of the child, or the day the you knew or should have known that you may not be the biological father of the child, whichever occurs later. During the disavowal action you may request and the court will order a DNA paternity test to be taken.   If this is something you are interested in pursuing please feel free to set up a free consultation with my office and I would be more than happy to help.... Read More

Presuming you are separated, declare on your Financial Disclosure Form how much of the joint income actually ends up going to you; if you are still together, declare all of it, and include all expenses on the expense side as well.  The FDF does not have to be perfect, just honest.  Add sheets with notes if the reality of your situation cannot be made to be fairly reflected on the form.  You would probably benefit from a consultation with a family law specialist.... Read More

No. If you have agreed to a certain amount which he will pay in child support and the court accepts that agreement and makes it an order of the court, that order will be a judgment. At that point the judgment will be binding upon your husband and he will be obligated to pay. If he were to cease payment, he could be found to be in civil contempt and be made to pay the back owed child support, as well as the costs of bringing him to court to enforce the judgment. As well, if the violation of the order is sever enough, the judge at their discression may place him in jail for the contempt. ... Read More