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My husbands employer received a verification of work for child support in Texas. We have been married 13 years w/ two kids. When he called in they could only tell him that the child would be 17 this month. He did not even recognize the moms name!! He has never heard anything from anyone saying they were pregnant or from any child claiming to be his. What should we do? Can they even go back 17 years if he never had any contact with them? At this point he told them that he would take a blood test. If it is his child what can they do after that time period?? That would have made him 18 @ the time it was conceived. Any advice is so appreciated!!

2007-03-17 15:43:55 · 18 answers · asked by roo 1 in Family & Relationships Family

18 answers

The first thing is to get a paternity test. The second (regardless of test outcome) would be to get legal advice to see if the show-up mother has legal right to ask for back child support. If she does, seek out more info about the curiously-timed inquisitive mother to find why she hasn't come forward in 17 years, so you can use her statements/facts in court when/if necessary.

Sorry, I only know Washington, California and Nevada family law.

2007-03-17 15:52:35 · answer #1 · answered by Your Uncle Dodge! 7 · 2 0

First of all, if it is his child, it's pretty low for the mother to wait until the age limit is almost up to file. Secondly, since I live in Texas & my husband is being fuc*ed by the child support "system" I can tell you that the state is not going to play fair. If the DNA test is positive, they can & probably will issue back child support with interest for the 17 years, and then a monthly amount until the child is either 18, is married or otherwise emancipated, or graduates unless he enrolls in college and lives at home, in which case there's another 2 years. It depends on whichever comes first. After any of these is reached, the monthly support stops, but your husband must continue to pay the back child support off, which continues to gain interest. The court will most likely issue a garnishment order, and payments will be taken directly from his check. (the entire amount if he's paid 1ce a month, 1/2 from each check if he's paid twice a month, and 1/4 if it's every week.)Luckily, Bush passed a law about 2 years ago that lowered the interest from 12% to 6% on back child support. The amount of child support cannot be more than 50% of your husbands income. The state of Texas usually sides with the mother. I pray that it's not in Plainview or Lubbock, TX, because they have no idea what they're doing and your husband will get screwed. Since it was filed in TX, he cannot request a change of venue, and will have to come to Texas for any hearings. Make sure he has every piece of paperwork every single time, bc they like to surprise you when you're not expecting it. (Like they say it's a hearing for a court date, and then say screw it, it's today) To determine the amount of child support, they (somewhat) look at how many children that are his and lives with him, how many children that are his and he supports outside the home, how much he makes at his current job, and they will pull up all the places he's worked and how much he made at those jobs for the past 17 years. Your husband needs a lawyer, bc they probably won't care about anything he says without one. There is a place in Dallas called Fathers For Equal Rights that might be able to help with advice. I have their #s if you want. And if you live outside of TX, the rulings of the court here usually overrules your state, since it was filed and tried here. If you have any other questions or just want to talk about how stupid they are, you can email me @ dmarie2101@yahoo.com.

2007-03-23 02:48:47 · answer #2 · answered by dmarie2101 5 · 0 0

Wow! This is something. After 17 years, somethings up. Maybe they simply got the wrong guy. This can happen. Research as much as you can. Is his name on the birth certificate? If not, they can't force him to pay child support unless he is the proven father. If she's known for 17 years that he is the father and didn't let him know that he had a child, your husband can have a pretty strong case I would imagine. Really, the best thing to do would be to find out for sure if he is the father, blood tests, etc. If so, maybe he should look at it as a gift. It could be a whole new relationship for all of you. At 17 child support payments won't last but for 5-6 years depending on if the kid goes to college or not. If he is the father, it really would be his duty to pay. Although, he would sure deserve one heck of an explanation! Good luck!

2007-03-17 22:53:28 · answer #3 · answered by Daystar9 1 · 1 0

It is hard to know the purpose of the verification letter your husband's employer received. It is possible that he has been named as the father of a child and the child support enforcement office is in the process of locating him and contacting him about this. If that is the case, he will get a letter and can contact them and go from there. If the matter has not been adjudicated...determined already in court, then he has the opportunity to deny knowing the mother, prove he is not the person named, or request paternity testing. If this matter was already adjudicated, he can request copies of the order and supporting paperwork. It is possible that he was notified of a court date and did not appear and an order was entered without his appearing. Ask the employer for the name and number of the caseworker and start answering your questions.

2007-03-21 10:52:25 · answer #4 · answered by curious74432 3 · 0 0

He can claim he has no knowledge of the child and doesn't know the mother. The court, however is not interested in the claims of the mother or father. The court is interested in what is in the best interest of the child. If your husband takes the blood test with the DNA finger printing they will know with a 99.9995% certainty if he is the father or not.
If he is the father he will probably be required to pay child support until the child is out of school, which could include college depending upon the judge. The judge might or might not require payment of part of the child support for the previous 17 years.

2007-03-24 03:24:32 · answer #5 · answered by don n 6 · 0 1

Cross your fingers... I've been off on disability for the past few months and watched WAY too much of The Maury Show... some of those women drag 10 guys up to be tested, swearing each and every one of them MUST be the father! If your hubby honestly doesn't remember this woman, there's a fair chance that she just dragged his name out from somewhere.. maybe she was a casual acquaintance for a brief time.. who knows... Get the DNA test before you start fretting.. then see a good lawyer!

Good luck to you both.. pray you'll hear the wonderful words "You are NOT the father" :)

2007-03-24 06:48:21 · answer #6 · answered by endorable 4 · 0 0

Get a lawyer, get a blood test, and make sure they are not mixing him up with someone else. If his name is Bob Miller for instance there could be 5 Bob Millers in the area you live. You are off to a good start with a DNA test and find out what you can about the Mother. Does he even know her? Good Luck.

2007-03-25 22:49:33 · answer #7 · answered by vaelwyn 1 · 0 0

wow, this sounds terrible. i would try to find out if there was a mix up first. maybe there are two people with your husbands name, also try to find out when and where conception took place (check birth records for where born) and try to contact the mother to ask her a few questions. but after doing all of this contact a lawyer. this is the only way you can protect yourself. if he's found to be the father, he may have to pay back child support for the last 17 years.

but i'm worried about the child. what were they told about their father? why wait so long? it sounds like the mother is just digging for some money. what good does it do her child to just get one year of child support. she is looking for more.

2007-03-17 22:51:36 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2 1

I would call Social Security first and make sure someone is not using your husbands number. It could be mistaken identity. If he does have a child though, I have never heard of them going back 17 years if an order had never been established before. Definitely take a paternity test, and make sure someone else isn't using his identity.

2007-03-23 15:19:21 · answer #9 · answered by Penny K 6 · 0 1

It's time to get a savvy and aggressive lawyer (the one's who are normally expensive, but effective--let the "buyer beware" on doing so) and have hubby ready to submit to the DNA test.

Desperate Debbie is out of $$$$, likely for illegal drugs / alcohol she's addicted to. Now, she's raking the memory, seeking to find the long unknown daddy of her child--knowing full well she can attain rights to all those years of "back child support". And there's a chance she may hit "pay dirt", too.

Prayers be that your man is NOT the poor sap. DNA testing will answer the question--have him prepared to submit to it. Also, I'd look into getting a savvy, aggressive lawyer--bent on protecting HIS rights as well. And to that, I say "let the buyer beware".

Good luck and I hope this nightmare ends well for you and your husband.

2007-03-24 17:45:57 · answer #10 · answered by Mr. Wizard 7 · 0 1

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