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How to collect child support

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rurikbird

Junior Member
New York
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I need help for a friend, any qualified advice will be greatly appreciated. The father of my friend's kids (they were never legally married, but have 2 daughters age 13 and 11) is refusing to pay any child support whatsoever. My friend (her name is Diane) is in desperate financial situation and in danger of losing her home because her job doesn't pay nearly enough to cover the mortgage payments and living expenses for herself and her 2 daughters. I am asking this question for her because they have no computer.

Like I said, the daughters' father doesn't provide any financial support whatsoever. He works "off the books", so previous attempts to collect CS were unsuccessful. Despite all that he still insists to see his daughters 3 times a week. Is there anything that can be done in this case? There must be some kind of mechanism to collect money from someone who has almost no "official" income, but has assets and money in the bank, am I wrong? The father is not cooperative and will pay up only if feels some kind of real threat of legal action.

If you need any more details or specifics to answer this question, please post here and I will ask Diane and post follow-ups.
 


justalayman

Senior Member
first, visitation and child support are exclusive of one another.

is there a court order in place for him to pay CS? If not, the mother needs to file for child support. If he is able to work, the court will typically impute an income.
 

rurikbird

Junior Member
first, visitation and child support are exclusive of one another.

is there a court order in place for him to pay CS? If not, the mother needs to file for child support. If he is able to work, the court will typically impute an income.
Yes, mother did file for CS. I think there is a court order, but I'll double-check with her to be sure.
 

BL

Senior Member
IF SCU gets involved there are other collection methods including suspensions of licenses ,etc which may prompt the obligor to pay.

New York City Family Court

What Happens If the Respondent Does Not Pay the Order?

The petitioner may file a "violation petition" asking the court to take action against a respondent who fails to pay a support order. The petition must be served upon (delivered to) the respondent. A hearing is then held to decide whether the respondent has violated the court's order. The Support Magistrate may enforce the order by directing SCU to take the payments directly from the respondent's paycheck, order the respondent to pay a lump sum toward back monies owed, or take other steps to collect the money owed.

A respondent who falls behind in payments also risks having his or her driver's license or professional and business licenses suspended, bank accounts seized, passport revoked, and tax refunds intercepted.

If the respondent is found to have willfully and voluntarily failed to pay a child support order, he or she may be jailed for up to six months, for contempt of court.

You can use the free and easy DIY Form program to make your petition to ask the Family Court to take action against a respondent who fails to pay a support order.

*DIY (Do-It-Yourself)
 
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Proserpina

Senior Member
Diane also needs to understand that there is at least a chance that she will never see another dime in child support.

Some people will go out of their way - ALL the way - to avoid paying. To the point of ruining their credit, losing their license and doing spots in jail.

Unfortunately for Diane, if her salary isn't covering her bills, she may need to downsize. Or, find another source of income.
 

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