CLICK HERE FOR A CONSULTATION Laurence J. Brock is a California State Bar Certified Family Law Specialist
How to Get a Child Support Order Enforced in California
Caring for children today is prohibitively expensive, and if you are entitled to child support that you’re not getting, you need help enforcing your rights. As you likely know, in California you’re entitled to child support until your child is eighteen years old or if he or she is still in high school, up to the age of nineteen.
Your court order for support specifies a start date and amount. You can bring this court order in to seek help with a local child support agency. Search the California Department of Child Services for FAQs and locations. If they can’t help you, there are legal options you can pursue.
Forcing a Parent to Pay
These are the different ways of seeking payments through punitive financial measures:
Wage Garnishment
A Notice/Order to Withhold Income for Child Support is one option. This is also referred to as a garnishment order, income withholding order, or wage assignment. It can be put into place by a private entity, a child support agency from a state other than California, or a local child support agency (LCSA). The perk of this is that payment is taken automatically from a parent’s paycheck, removing the step where he or she decides to pay you that month. You can call your local child support agency to find out more about wage garnishment.
License Suspension or Revocation
The threat of taking away legal permits like a drivers license can spur reluctant payers into finding the money.
Passport Penalties
Taking away the ability to leave the country by restricting passport renewal is another way to goad deadbeat parents into paying by impinging on their freedom.
Income Tax Intercepts
Instead of getting a fat tax refund check, the parent would be looking at a receipt for child support payment.
Credit Bureaus
Deadbeat parents get reported to credit bureaus, which then hampers their ability to get loans and mortgages. Knowing that their reputation and buying power could be tarnished can force their hand.
Contempt of Court
A parent who doesn’t pay can be fined or sentenced to jail time. You would seek a family lawyer and start a court case to use this method.
You Are Not Alone
According to a 2011 statistic, non-custodial California parents were 19.2 billion dollars in arrears in child support payments. The Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services takes keeping up with child support very seriously, its website lists “Most Wanted Deadbeat Parents” and asks for help finding delinquent parents here and even posts their pictures.
Help from a Rancho Cucamonga Child Support Attorney
The Law Office of Laurence J. Brock has over twenty-five years of experience helping parents navigate custody issues and other divorce and family law matters. When it comes to getting child support for our clients, our firm uses all of our contacts and knowledge of custody cases to turn deadbeat parents into paying participants. We can also help you renegotiate terms and visitation rights.
Contact us for a free, confidential consultation with no obligations. We’re always happy to help. Give us call at 909-466-7661 or complete our online contact form below.
