unfair support order?

[newbiodad]

texas, after a paternity test i was ordered to pay $12,000 back support for a 15 yr old child i had no prior knowledge of, isnt there a limit of time to file suit, or period for back supp? i also pay 12% interest. is that fair. total is $380 month, i make min wage. judge said pay this before eat, rent, etc. is that fair. looks like jail for me. thanks to the state for making me a criminal.

 

[LadyBlu]

Considering you were only adjudged 12,000.00 for a 15 yr old child.. you should be thankful. Looks like they didnt go back to the childs birth.

I am also from TX and have a 16 yr old that the state finally decided to assist me in support services after attempting to get assistance since the child was a little under 1yr old. The laws finally changed about 4 yrs ago, making it easier on the mother to pursue support.

My experience in the beginning was that the court was unwilling to make him pay any support and the atty that I hired to assist me tried to get me to let his daughter and son in law adopt my child.

After many years of thinking that there was nothing I could do legally to get his father to pay support, the laws changed. There are now laws in affect to help the mother seek support that werent in place 5-10 yrs ago.

I should also mention that you state you were not aware that you had this child. Did you move out of state after having sex with the mother? Or did you lose complete contact? It is very hard to prove to the court that you were totally unaware of a childs existence, especially if the mother has any records of having contact with you during the 15 yr lapse.

I would suggest that you pay your support as ordered by the court, take on a 2nd job if necessary and allow the state to take your IRS refund to help pay down the arrears. This will lower your support liability, which in turn lowers the amount of interest that will be accumulating.