Collecting Child Support for Guardianship of Nephew - AZ

[ensin360]

I live in AZ and we have had guardianship of my wife's nephew for six months now and am curious about the rights we have in terms of collecting child support. The reason I bring this up is because on the paperwork we received from the court it states "you have the powers and responsibilities similar to those of a parent or a minor child, except that you are not legally obligated to contribute to the support of the minor from your own funds," which makes me believe that we can take the mother to court to collect child support. Right now the mother refuses to pay us anything. We didn't have legal advice when we filled out the paperwork to obtain guardianship so before we peruse this matter through legal actions I would like to get some advice to see if it would be worth our while. Thanks for the responses.

[mistoffolees]

My advice would be to get legal representation.

[nextwife]

Is Dad around? Child Support should be sought from Both parents.

[ensin360]

mistoffolees - Yes, legal representation would be the way to go; however, I am looking for information on rights of a guardian in terms of child support before I start handing over money for legal representation.

nextwife - Yes, both parents are around; however, they are separated. We receive money from the father who just wants to help out since he knows what a good thing we are doing for his son. We were the ones that asked for guardianship because neither parent is able to properly take care of their him. He has been with his mother for the first four years of his life and was neglected, which is why we stepped forward. I am just trying to find out what the rights of the guardians are in terms of child support.

Thanks.