Q: Can my son's dad sue for child support if he owes, if he has custody? I feel like it's a control thing for him.
My son is 13, I've been the custodial parent up until June 2019 when his dad got him for the summer. I've been the only provider. He was put on child support right before my son turned 2. He's never paid. When we finally started going to court in 2014, he ended up going to prison for almost 5 years for an unrelated issue. When he finally got out I agreed to my son moving with him once he got on his feet. I figured this would be good for the both of them, plus it was time his dad see what I go through with his behavior. On the last day of school, in which my son got in trouble and got kicked off the school bus, his dad called later that night yelling and cursing me out about false info my son gave him, then other issues he has with me. He doesn't like that I am married to a women with a baby. So I told him to just keep my son because they were both too much at the time. Haven't seen or spoken to my son since. Now his dad suing me for child support and I don't think that's fair.
A:
There are several issues involved here.
In general, if a child stops living with one parent and starts living with another parent full time the custody order needs to be changed.
In general, if one party owes another party back child support a child support enforcement action must be filed.
In general, if a child is living with one parent the other parent is legally responsible to provide financial support.
In general, there may be offsetting obligations for child support, which will effect who pays what if anything to whom.
An attorney can help with cleaning these issues up. Good luck.
Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes only. I am not your attorney unless you sign a contract and money is exchanged.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
