how does the child support proccess actually work? i am due to deliver in november. the father of the child informed me 3 months into the pregnanycy that he is married and he wants to stay with his wife. so once the child is born do i need to hire a lawyer or do i just file some sort of petition? the father is likely to order a dna test which will prove the baby is his. then what? does he then need to hire a lawyer?

what happens if he takes me to court with a lawyer and i can not afford one? what do i do then? is there free counsil for people like me or am i just screwed?

if i want to file for child support do i have to pay in any way? i am concerned because i am left with no money at all.

when men are ordered to pay support what are likely visitation/custody orders?

does the fact that i am unemployed make his support payment go up?
he is married so is support determined by their joint income?

www.dhr.state.md.us/csea/index.htm (http://www.dhr.state.md.us/csea/index.htm)

This is the link to Md child support. If you are not recieving state aid, then you will pay a one time fee of $25.

You do not need an atty for child support. If and when he sues for custody/visitation, if you want an atty, contact your local bar association to see if anyone is on rotation for pro bono or reduced fee work.

Nobody can tell you what the custody/visitation orders will be. C/V is a seperate issue from child support. The odds are that you will retain primary physical custody and share joint legal custody with him having standard visitation. (Every wednesday night and every other weekend, plus shared holidays). BUT, that is just a general assumption, so don't think that the C/V info is set in stone.

You are going to have to work. If you have any sort of employment history, your past tax returns will be used to impute a figure for your income to arrive at what a reasonable amount of child support should be. You are both responsible for supporting the child. Child suppport is not supposed to be your source of income. His wife's income will not be considered. She has no responsibility to support the child. Only the child's parents' income will be used to derive the CS amount.

Nothing can be ordered until after the child is born, so relax for the next few months.

thanks. i know i will have to work. i am not able to becuase of difficulties in the pregnancy. i have applied for many part time jobs but no one will hire me because i will have to leave in a few months. i can not pay for child care after the baby is born becuase i have used all of my savings on gas and car insurrance looking for a job and and rent and food and doctors bills and i have not been working. so i will have to stay home with the baby until i can figure something out. its very hard. thats why initially i will need child support. i wish the father would offer to take care of the baby half of the time so i can get a job but that won't be happening. any advice is welcome!

thanks. i know i will have to work. i am not able to becuase of difficulties in the pregnancy. i have applied for many part time jobs but no one will hire me because i will have to leave in a few months. i can not pay for child care after the baby is born becuase i have used all of my savings on gas and car insurrance looking for a job and and rent and food and doctors bills and i have not been working. so i will have to stay home with the baby until i can figure something out. its very hard. thats why initially i will need child support. i wish the father would offer to take care of the baby half of the time so i can get a job but that won't be happening. any advice is welcome!
Contact the DHR to get information on financial aid, WIC, insurance, and day care subsidies. He will be ordered to pay child support (once the baby is born)and a portion of the support will go to the state to pay back the financial aid they extend to you while you get on your feet. What about working from home? You have a computer. What about something like medical transcribing?

medical transcribing? i have never thought of that and i'm going to look into it right now! i am trying to go to nursing school soon. so wish me luck! thanks for all of your information. its helped keep me sane! these topics are things that keep me up at night. when all is said and done i want my kid to be happy and loved!

cooloonka,

I have a child support case in MD and I advise you the minute you receive the SSN & birth certificate, please complete the application and submit it in person, if possible, to the Child Support Office.

I filed when my daughter was 3 weeks old becuase Markell decided that he didn't want a baby when I was almost five months pregnant. He requested a DNA which of course proved he is the dad. A DNA test will delay your case for about an additional 2 month. You probably won't start getting a check for the baby until he is about 8-9 months.

Maryland's process is drawn out...if you have family, this is the time to ask for help, it is not going to be easy especially with no financial help from dad.

By the way, you will NOT need to hire an attorney, the Child Support office has attornies that represent the best interest of the child...I had a GREAT one in PG County...she made his attonrey look like she just came out of law school.

hi thanks for the advice. how long did it take for you to receive a check? do you get back payments from the date the child was born?

when my baby is born i will have to sign a birth certificate with the father's name on it. he won't sign it becaue he won't be there. so then i just take that and the ss card that i got in the mail to and the application to the office and then what? do they subpoena the father to court and then he requests a dna test? and then after all that is said and done then we must go back to the courts for the real hearing? is that correct?

/This is what I did...once the SOB ifnormed me that I was on my own with my baby, I called and requested an application to be sent to me. I file the application with the Child Support office (County) and paid the $25 fee.

We also had a DNA test and that delays the child support proceedings by 2-3 months. Once the DNA test returns then the child support office will file the paperwork with your County Court...once you go to court, the judge decides how much he will pay (based on his tax return or check stubs).

The will not give you support from the day the baby was born (but from the day the County Child Support dept files with the court. That is why it is important to file the paperwork ASAP (that is once the baby is born and you receive the SSN card. There is no need to hire an attorney, the child support office has attornies that represent the "best interest" of the child ... and I can attest that they do an EXCELLENT job (as a matter of fact, the CS attorney made his attorney look like she was still in law school).

He can hire a lawyer (but you shouldn't care) he is still going to have to support your child based on his income -- there is nothing his lawyer can do to prevent this except mayb seek joing custody. I think you should file for legal custody of the baby (before filing for child support). Some men actually try to get joint legal custody so they can pay less.

In MD, child support and custody/visitation are 2 totally different issues. They will have to file a petition for custody/visitation -- the judge won't make a decison on a custody/visitation matter at a child support hearing.

I am not sure how your umemployment status will play into determining child support...however please take your last 2 years check stub with you to court -- they may impute your income (and you don't it imputed to high, that why it is important to take your last 2 tax return). If you get a good chidl support attorney, please mention that he is married and you want your baby care for as if you and him were married...they will fight for your baby's right.

Also, please let them factor in daycare since you plan on going back to work (also get yourself on some daycare waiting list...in MD the waiting list are quite long...sometimes 9-12 months)

just one tidbit for the sake of being accurate- the attorneys working for CSE do not represent anyone but the STATE....it just so happens that most of the time the states interests and the interests of the child can be met by the same action

just one tidbit for the sake of being accurate- the attorneys working for CSE do not represent anyone but the STATE....it just so happens that most of the time the states interests and the interests of the child can be met by the same action


can you explain this in layman's terms? what is cse?

can you explain this in layman's terms? what is cse?
CSE is Child Support Enforcement. You may also see it referred to as CSEA (child support enforcement agency).

I've always heard it called DCSE (Department of Child Support Enforcement).

who has to pay for the dna test?

i have a problem with pay stubs also.....i never saved my pay stubs. i might have a few random ones but 2 years ago i wasn't planning on ever needing my pay stubs and i was young and ignorant to the fact that i should be saving them. i'm sure i can figure that all out somehow......this is going to be tough. i've been talking with other women i know. and its amazing how often these situations happen. so frequently. at least its somewhat comforting to know you are not alone.

who has to pay for the dna test?

i have a problem with pay stubs also.....i never saved my pay stubs. i might have a few random ones but 2 years ago i wasn't planning on ever needing my pay stubs and i was young and ignorant to the fact that i should be saving them. i'm sure i can figure that all out somehow......this is going to be tough. i've been talking with other women i know. and its amazing how often these situations happen. so frequently. at least its somewhat comforting to know you are not alone.
IF you can't find your pay stubs, you can take copies of your tax returns. You can also see if your employer can give you copies.

your employer might also be able to provide you with a payroll summary for the last two years...or at least for as long as you have worked there if less