Support Question

Okay so just let me be clear that I'm not sure if different counties have different rules but I don't THINK they do. I live in Alameda county in CA and here the child support does not continue to increase AFTER the bio father signs over or looses their rights (of course) BUT all previous back support due up until that time IS STILL OWED, it does NOT just disappear. Your ex was financially responsible for your child until the day he signed over his rights, so if he was in arrears up until that point, he still owes you that money. My ex for example never paid me child support for my two children who were later adopted by my husband. So even though we filed for abandonment and they were adopted he still owes me child support from the day I first got the child support order against him until the day I filed and won my abandonment order, years later. - Plus interest ;)

How hard was it to prove the abandonment part, and did you do that first? My ex hasn't seen or spoken to my 13yr old for nine years. He does pay $2.18 in support because that amount is a portion of his unemployment benefits, and I'll probably never see it, but there are a ton or arrears. I doubt if he will voluntarily give up his rights, so we will have to prove abandonment. Where do I get the forms/paper work for that, and did you do it on your own, or hired a laywer? My husband and I are anxious to get started, we just don't know where to start.

I didn't have to prove the abandonment luckily. He contacted me wanting to give up his rights. From what I understand of the law, you can't just give up your rights, someone had to be there to take over the role, hence the step-parent adoption. I did have an attorney, but she had been through my whole custody case over the years. The whole process from start to finish took 7 months. I think in part that was due to a back-up in the court system. The day the adoption was complete the child support stop accruing, however all back-support was due and payable, and what was DCSS told me they would continue the wage garnishment until it was at a $0 balance. My sister had looked into going the abandonment route, her ex hasn't contacted their daughter in number of years. I believe it has to be be 3 years of no contact, then you have to put a notice in the paper with the intention of adopting and all that. What my sister ended up doing, is gaining full legal/physical custody of my niece (which was pretty simple as the dad is nowhere to be found.) Once she had full legal custody, she changed her last name to her husbands, and in the next few months they are going to put the adoption through, because she has full legal custody she's the one who makes the decision. If I can help you any further feel free to let me know. Good luck!

Thank you. He hasn't contacted his child for 8 years. I don't have any contact info for him. I'm going to check the legal/physical custody aspect in my custody paperwork. The name has been changed legally for 2 years now, and we are ready for the next step. thank you for your advice.

Since it's been 8 years since contact, I would think it would be pretty easy to get the adoption done on abandonment. From what I know you send the info to the last known address you have. All counties in California also have what's called a family law facilitator. Call up your local courthouse and ask for their number. When I was going through my first divorce I was young with no money, and they helped me with what paperwork and such I needed to file. Might be worth it to give them a call. If you have any other questions feel free to ask.