Q: What can I do if father refuses to sign final custody papers? Is the orders in affect?

A: You have two separate questions here. First question: What if father refuses to sign final custody papers? What papers? A Marital Settlement Agreement? Or a Judgment ordered by the Court? Or something else? It depends on exactly what the order said. But the simple answer is you have to go back to court and ask the judge to sign the "final custody papers" without his signature. But don't do this by yourself. Get some advice first, so you do this right.

If a judge ordered father to pay child support, the easiest thing to do is to go the Child Support Services and ask them for help in collecting. Their services are free. Yes, really. A second option is to get an Income Withholding Order to have the support deducted from his pay check. If he doesn't have a pay check, but has money in the bank, you can get a garnishment of his bank account. There are other things that can be done as well, but these are the most common.

When you ask a question online, like here, the answers you get are only going to be basic information, a starting point. Attorneys are trained to talk to you to find out all the important details of your story. Getting all the details is very important because it will make a big difference in the legal information given to you. It is strongly recommended that even if you get a response here on Justia, that you also talk to an attorney. Many have free first interviews. Even if you have to pay, it is worth it because you talking to a professional who is going to focus on you.

All 58 counties in California have some type of Self-Help Center. The people at the Self-Help Center help you fill out family law forms for free. They can’t do everything in family law, but they will help you with all the basics. The downside is that they don’t have a lot of time to spend with you, and often there is a line to get in to see them. The upside is that it is free. So if you have more time than money, go to the Self-Help Center for divorce, custody, visitation, paternity and domestic violence paperwork. But if you want a more thorough in-depth help, it is recommended that you see a family law attorney. Many family law attorneys have a free first interview. Some charge only $50. Some $75 or $100. It only takes a phone call to their office to find out the fee for the first interview. There is no obligation to hire an attorney to do anything after the first interview. That’s up to you. Also there is no requirement that you talk to an attorney in your area. Any family law attorney licensed in California can help you no matter where you live as long as it is in the state or your case is filed in California. The interview would be done by phone, Zoom, Skype, Facetime or some other type online method. Even if the attorney is in your area, many attorneys are only talking to people this way due to the Covid pandemic, so you couldn’t have an interview in their office anyway. Also attorneys are going to give you a more-in-depth analysis of your situation than you will get at the Self-Help Center. So call an attorney and set up an appointment.