Q: What should I do if mother had a stroke recently?
My youngest daughter will move with me full time until mother recovers which might be a long time. Should I file for child support from her?
A:
If you were ordered to pay support while the child lived with the mother then you definitely want to modify the support so you don't continue to be liable for payments while your daughter lives with you. That would involve also recalculating the support so yes, the mother may end up having to pay support but that would be based on the new income circumstances for the mother. If mother had a stroke and can't work, she may have little or no income. If mother ends up collecting social security disability or SSI, because she is disabled long term, your daughter may be entitled to SS or SSI benefits as well.
If mother is likely to be disabled long term, the sooner she applies for disability the better. It can take years to get approved and once approved you get an award retroactive to the date you applied. She should apply even if it is still too early to tell if she will recover and return to work or not. She can always drop the application if it doesn't look like she will need it. She may also get disability for the short term she was disabled.
So talk to the mother about applying for disability and see what you need to do to include your daughter as a recipient of benefits. Most Attorneys who work in this area agree to take a flat fee from the benefits that are ultimately awarded so it isn't expensive to hire an Attorney to help with this.
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