The first thing you need to do is verify that you are on the birth certificate of the children. If you are not on the birth certificate, you will need to go to court and have paternity adjudicated to you through the use of a DNA test. As far as who receives custody and child support, this will be determined in a court of law by the laws of the state you reside in. Generally the children's mother will get custody and the father will end up paying child support, the child support amount is usually dictated by state law, as it is in Massachusetts.
I have responded to your inquiry according to the laws of Massachusetts, where my firm is located. Laws can vary significantly from state to state and cases tend to be rather fact-specific, so you are best served by consulting with a knowledgeable attorney in weighing your options. Email messages/Online Correspondence are akin to conversations and do not reflect the level of analysis applied to formal legal opinions. Email/Online responses do not form an attorney-client relationship.
Joseph F. Botelho, Esq. BOTELHO LAW GROUP Attorneys At Law 901 Eastern Ave. Unit 2 Fall River, MA 02723 Office: 888-269-0688 FAX: 877-475-8147
http://massachusettslawyeronline.com/
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Answered on Dec 15th, 2014 at 12:09 PM