The courts have ruled on paternity and the man you said is your baby’s daddy has, in fact, been decreed as the same. That move will take a load off of your shoulders and give your child all the rights he deserves. Even so, his paying you support is not a slam dunk. If he does not cooperate you may find yourself in court again, pleading for assistance. Here’s how your state may respond to ensure that the bio dad keeps up his end of the decree.
1. Garnish wages. One of the easiest and most straightforward ways for the state to collect what is owed to you is to attach a garnishment to the bio dad’s wages. The way that this works is simple: the dad’s employer is notified and a portion of his wages is subtracted to pay for what he owes. This method is not only effective, but it is embarrassing, especially now that the company is involved int he child support process.
2. Seize tax returns. The baby’s daddy may be entitled to a state or federal tax refund, but he may never see even one dollar of it if he owes you money. Yes, family court can order that those payments be intercepted and the funds collected by the court for disbursement to you.
3. Take away lottery earnings. The state knows who wins the lottery and will allow various departments within the state to talk with each other about those winnings. For instance, if the bio dad owes money and it is made known that he plays the lottery, then when he goes to collect his winnings, those funds are cut off before he can claim same. In some states it is an easy process whereby the lottery commission automatically queries various databases to ensure that the money owed is collected.
4. License suspension. The state may ratchet up the collection effort by withholding certain licenses that are near and dear to the baby’s daddy. These can include fishing, hunting and occupational licenses. Even professional licenses, commercial driver’s licensing and personal driving licenses may be canceled or not renewed.
5. DMV intervention. Your state’s department of motor vehicle (DMV) may not only suspend his driver’s incense, but take other measures to thwart bio dad’s plans. When it comes time to vehicle renewal, registration may be denied. In some cases, more extreme measures may be taken, including repossessing his vehicle provided that there is no lien on it.
6. Passport revocation. If you worry that the bio dad might leave the country, you should share your concerns with your social worker. This possibility becomes stronger if he is a native of another country. Working with the federal government, the court may ask that his passport be revoked or that his application for a passport be denied.
7. Court intervention. In some cases, the court may haul bio dad into court to address his financial responsibilities. If he doesn’t make payment, he could be held in contempt of court and face jail time. Certainly, if he is in jail he cannot make payments, thus the state would take over. Often, jail time is a last case scenario that is only pushed when all other attempts have been exhausted.
DNA Testing
before all these steps are taken, DNA testing must be taken to confirmed same explains the DNA Diagnostic Center. The process can be a quick one with a definitive result delivered to either confirm or deny paternity.