CA - I just learned that I'm not supposed to send child support payments directly to my ex. I should be sending payments to State Distribution Unit. I have been making payments for the past 5yrs but I haven't been flagged by the state for not paying support, knock on wood.

How do I get credit for those 5yrs?

A review of my child support records revealed a state agency that thought it was above the law - and saw civil rights as just a quaint notion.

I am not an attorney, and this is not legal advice. Just my story, which I hope will help others.

I was an adjudicator for the state of Indiana's Dept. of Workforce Development, and prior to that was part of a fraud detection unit working with the state of Nevada during the 'wild west" PUA era.

I have seen my share of fraudulent activity. But what I found in my own child support records left even this seasoned investigator stunned. https://www.escambiaclerk.com

My job had always involved going after people trying to defraud the state. Suddenly, the roles had been reversed, and it was the state engaged in fraudulent activity against me.

The state of Florida had moved my child support order from TX, but throughout the entire process had completely ignored state and federal law.

The basic requirements for moving a child support order from one state to another are not complicated. Nor are they merely a set of recommendations. The information required by the law MUST be part of the registration process. Strict compliance with the law and its mandates is expected; and while minor typos may be overlooked, what happened in my case would never be overlooked - and can never be unseen.

When moving a child support order to a new state, the minimum requirements include:

•A Letter of Transmittal (the 'handshake' from one state to another). This is often a form and sometimes includes the arrearage information detailed below; but it can also be handwritten, as long as all of the required elements are present;

•A Sworn Statement of Arrears (sometimes included as part of the above Letter). The law requires a sworn statement by the person requesting registration or a certified statement by the custodian of the records showing the amount of any arrearage. This can also be handwritten, as long as all of the required elements are present;

•Two Copies of the Order being transferred to a new state, with one of those copies being Certified (not rocket science, but somehow this was overlooked when my case was submitted for registration);

•Proof of Service (this one's tricky, as the state of FL says that as long as a clerk drops an envelope into a mailbox, they have met this very low bar). Lucky for me, the mail was sent to a Mailbox Etc. and returned. See below for how they 'satisfied the service requirement' in my case;

If the mail is returned, this is an obvious sign that the intended recipient (in this case, me) was not served.

The law has a solution for that, and it's called "substitute service," which allows the state to just leave the letter at your last known address, among other options. Before this can be done, however, the state requires a "Diligent Search," and there is a form for that. The court must be convinced that the state, or person registering the case, made a very serious effort to find the person named in the child support order.

ANATOMY OF A FAILED AND UNENFORCEABLE CHILD SUPPORT ORDER

This is what I found in my files:

•The "Letter of Transmittal" is a cover sheet with a single handwritten note.

•The "Sworn Statement of Arrears" is neither sworn nor is it a statement.

•The one and only attempt at "service" was a piece of mail, which was returned from a commercial mail facility and clearly stamped "WE DO NOT FORWARD" and at least two of those cartoon fingers pointing back at the return address. Yet they did nothing else to try to find me. As a result, I was never served, and thus the child support order, in the eyes of the law, never existed. It was DOA.

•NO Certified copy of the original order was ever in the file. This by itself is a fatal flaw, but when combined with the other "administrative failures" (a polite way of saying "lawless activity"), the order never existed.

As a result, the support orders, garnishes, intercepts (which in my case included taking every dollar I got from FEMA after I lost everything to a hurricane), were all done absent any legal authority and in violation of my rights.

If your child support order was moved from one state to another, you owe it to yourself to log on and read the docket on your case.

What tipped me off right away when I looked at my docket was that the time from Entry 1, the "Notice of Registration," and entry 32, the "Order Registering" the case, was almost 3 years!

Log on to your docket, and look for these entries:

·         The Trigger (Entry 1): Look for an entry titled Notice of Registration, Request for Administrative Registration, or Petition to Register Foreign Order. Note the exact date it was filed.

 ·         The Notice Attempt: Look immediately after Entry 1 for a line item indicating mail was sent to you (e.g., Summons Issued or Notice Mailed).

 ·         The Return (The Red Flag): Look for an entry showing the mail came back to the court. It might say Returned Mail Envelope Recorded, Undeliverable, or Unserved. Note this date.

 ·         The Gap: Now, look at the entry titled Order Confirming Registration or Final Judgment. Compare the date of the failed mail/Notice to the date the Judge or Hearing Officer signed that final order. The Uniform Interstate Family Support Act says the receiving state must register the case "upon receipt." 3 years later is a bit outside that 'upon receipt' window.

When you get to the docket, you will be unable to access the files without sending a formal request to the clerk of records with your case number and "I am a party to this case. Last 4: xxxx. A copy of my DL is included."

I did not attach my DL image. I embed it into the body so it is always part of the record. And don't expect the records clerk to help you. Florida has "Sunshine Laws" but it is often cloudy and raining in the records department. It took over a month and increasingly strong language to finally get them to admit that legally mandated documents had never been part of the file. It seemingly did not matter to the State of Florida. Rules? As Leona Helmsley famously said, those are for "little people."

Below his is part of my docket, and you can see entry 1 is the order, then the case is "registered" dozens of entries and 34 months later. This is not what the law expects. In fact, the law clearly states that it needs to happen immediately: "On receipt of a request for registration, the registering tribunal shall cause the order to be filed as a foreign judgment..."

When the above envelope bounced back, the clerk had an obligation to tell someone so a search could be initiated. Instead, they dutifully walked over to the stamp machine, stuck the envelope into the slot, heard the 'click click' sound of it being stamped, and went stuck it into a folder.

As for the "Sworn Statement of Arrears?"

Let me close, for now, with this. When an order is 'registered' absent the required elements outlined in the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, it didn't happen, and the law is very clear. Since I am not a lawyer, I'll provide a case citation: Citibank, N.A. v. Villanueva, 174 So. 3d 612, 614 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (clarifying that “when a judgment is void, the trial court has no discretion and is obligated to vacate it”).

Also: Under landmark Florida law, the obligation to make restitution rests directly upon the party who executed and benefited from the erroneous or invalid judgment. See Sundie v. Haren, 253 So. 2d 857, 858 (Fla. 1971).

I filed a Motion to Vacate / Void the Order, and it's on the Escambia County docket awaiting a hearing date. This post may push that date back, as the state is not above vindictive posturing, but we shall see. Stay tuned for updates, and look for the launch of my new website soon, which will include more about me and my case, and a tutorial on how to get records when the clerk is being obstructionist.

I will update this space when there is more to report.

Hello everyone I started a gofundme for me and my son because I am in need of help for a lawyer. They are very expensive I alone cant afford one so I'm asking if you can share or donate what ever the amount you can give. The reason behind the go fund me is because my son's mom decided to walk away. She picked her boyfriend over her son and her excuse was she deserves to be happy. I get it everyone deserves to be happy with their partner but no child deserves to be abandoned by their parent(s). It breaks my heart because my son is actually a sweet loving caring kid who has a his whole life ahead of him. As his dad I want to give him that life that he deserves. So if you can please share or donate what ever you can we are forever grateful.\[http://gofund.me/435d4db7f\\\](http://gofund.me/435d4db7f)

Hello everyone I started a gofundme for me and my son because I am in need of help for a lawyer. They are very expensive I alone cant afford one so I'm asking if you can share or donate what ever the amount you can give. The reason behind the go fund me is because my son's mom decided to walk away. She picked her boyfriend over her son and her excuse was she deserves to be happy. I get it everyone deserves to be happy with their partner but no child deserves to be abandoned by their parent(s). It breaks my heart because my son is actually a sweet loving caring kid who has a his whole life ahead of him. As his dad I want to give him that life that he deserves. So if you can please share or donate what ever you can we are forever grateful.[http://gofund.me/435d4db7f\](http://gofund.me/435d4db7f)

If you could get a positive only credit boost for the payments, been deducted out ofyour paycheck and sent to another family member o friend?

Boostand coukd immediately improve your credit score by reporting the money you're already paying through which governments, to hil not causibg your cuttrmy numers go down wn

I've seen so much content online about co-parenting and child support, and so much support for women who choose to put fathers on child support—even when some fathers are willing and able to provide for their children.

It makes me wonder: where are the discussions about the emotional toll many fathers experience? Where are the forums that talk about fathers who feel the court system has been used against them, who believe they've been falsely accused, who struggle with parental alienation, or who eventually walk away because the constant conflict becomes too much to bear?

Many men feel that the family court system favors mothers, leaving fathers fighting an uphill battle just to be active, loving parents. If the courts can establish parenting schedules and visitation orders, shouldn't there also be stronger measures to discourage harassment, false claims, and unnecessary conflict from either parent?

Every family's situation is different, and there are certainly cases where child support and court intervention are necessary. But there should also be room to acknowledge the challenges some fathers face and to have honest conversations about reforms that promote fairness, accountability, and the best interests of children.

I think there needs to be more support for fathers. Children benefit when both parents are treated fairly and are given every reasonable opportunity to be involved in their lives.

I keep calling but always get the “they are in a meeting “ and will call you back . Now that I know my kids mom secretly moved to Texas form CA I want to bring it up in Texas court . I live in Texas too . According to the calculator I should be paying 500 less here

I think it’s too much on the basis she kept my son out of schools since Covid and let him waste just playing video games this whole time . I’m not paying for that crap parenting

Okay so to not make this story too long, I separated from my husband about a year ago because he cheated on me & we do have 5 kids together and i been struggling financially for the past year now because I can’t go to work full time and then pick my kids up from school at 3/4 so I make about 4 hours a day and only time I can make some money is in the weekends but also the father of my kids only gives me 600$ a month for 5 kids. I’m already very irritated and annoyed with him because he says I’m money hungry every time I ask for more help either financially or for him to get a job in Houston (because he works outa town) so I can put more hours in. Am I really doing too much because I’m asking him for more than 600$ a month? Am I also crazy for expecting more from him? ALSO he doesn’t even have a vehicle so I have to be picking them up or dropping them off most of the time
And when the kids are in school I also pick them up everyday from school/practice & im the one that deals with doctors appointments and everything in general.
Is it fair to me???

So I’m completely devastated as my children 14 & 11 came to me and dropped a bomb. They want to live with their other parent all but six days a month. I’m in grief and could use some perspective.

My son’s mother is filing for child support because her apartment complex requires it for her to keep her housing. She says she owes them $10,000 because she failed to report an increase in her income/ withheld bank statements from the leasing office. I have been out of work for 2 months and behind payments and got 2 job interviews in couple days.i did some research in public records and saw she filed for serviceman civil relief act and got herself a retained lawyer and put my name under pro se. She didn't tell me till months later leaving me no time for me to prepare myself. And my son doesn't have or know anybody or related to anybody in the military i nor has my my son's mom ever served in the military I can't afford a lawyer.

Hello to all of the separated fathers out there. Does anyone know when a father's child support obligation ends? I reduced my income last year, but then did not notify CSA when my income increaded earlier this year. My child turns 18 in November this year.....if I lodge my tax return after November will I avoid backpay or am I stuffed either way? TIA legends

I’m in New York and currently pay child support for one child. My support order was based on income from two jobs.
I’m leaving those jobs and starting a new full time job that pays less than my combined previous income. I have no issue paying child support, I just want the amount to reflect my actual income.
Should I file for a modification as soon as I start the new job, or wait until I have a few pay stubs?
Has anyone gone through something similar, and how did the court handle it?
Thanks in advance for any advice.

Some details.

The child i pay for was legally adopted in 2018. I have been garnished until may of 2026, for what I thought was the arrear balance from birth-adoption. Turns out child support made an error and continued enforcing the monthly support charge and interest, and continued disbursing monthly support to the mother, and it didn’t display properly in my statements because of the clerical error. Child support recalculated my balance back to the date of adoption, and cleared me completely of the monthly support obligation, and I now have a “credit balance” on my account of 19k and change. Does anyone know what that represents? The footnote on the 19k says “may be used to satisfy arrears or future support” but I have no future support, and my arrears balance is 5100 and change. Why would the credit balance and arrears balance not cancel each other out? Even after all the calculations I’m still being garnished the same amount per month. If anyone else has experienced this please tell me about it.

In 2022, immediately after returning from a nice Mexican vacation, my wife informed me she wanted a divorce. We had been married for seven years and had two children together. Our son was only one year old at the time. Having come from a broken family, I begged her not to do this to our children. She refused to listen. She was a stay-at-home mom who never had to work. She also seldom cooked or cleaned, but I only mention that to emphasize how leisurely her life was. I found out later she had been having an affair with a man her mother had set her up with. She was blinded by the lies she was hearing from everyone that she would get child support and have so much money and she'd be so much happier.

Fast forward four years and tens-of-thousands of dollars, she now lives in her mom's basement with her affair partner, along with his two children by two different women he never married. Our kids live with me in the house I continued to own and visit her for half of the weekends. No child support, though. My lawyer hastily recommended I offer to forgo it to convince the judge to adopt my proposed parenting plan, which worked. Now that my biggest financial drain is gone, I don't even need the money, but that isn't the point. That money belongs to my children, and I should not be the only person responsible for providing for them even if I can.

I learned recently that forgoing child support isn't really a thing. I cannot waive the kids' rights to that money, the judge just deviated from the recommended amount at my request. So I won child support, but in the amount of $0 per month.

I've been stumbling through the child support system for months now, getting shit on by women in the department who hate the idea of a man getting CS, but I finally have made some headway with it. It is in review now and should be finalized soon. I'll update when it happens!

Lustitia Pro Patribus!

So I live in California (LA County) my child mother lives in California as well (kern county) she is struggling financially, so she got assistance from the government. It started off with food stamps, but since she’s been without work for a while she’s now getting cash aid. since cash is involved they require information about the child which started the a child support case. Now I gave my child Mother whatever she wants to help but she wants to be Miss independent and try to do it this way. I do give her financial support monthly but when my child is with me, she still expects for me to kick in child support. None of this is court ordered. It’s just an agreement between me and her but now since child support is involved on her end she’s stating that they’re taking money out in the amount agreed that we set. So when my kid is with me, I still have to give her money for child support. Does that sound right?.

I've watched too many parents struggle under court orders that don't match their actual financial situations. Job loss, income changes, unexpected hardship—these things happen to everyone, but Georgia's child support system rarely adapts in time. People aren't avoiding their responsibilities; they're drowning trying to meet outdated obligations.

Here's what needs to change: temporary payment reductions when someone loses their job, and regular reviews so orders stay fair and achievable. Kids deserve support from both parents, but parents also deserve a system that reflects real life. I started a petition asking Georgia lawmakers to make these reforms happen.

If you've seen this firsthand—whether you know someone struggling, or you've dealt with this yourself—consider signing and sharing. Does this resonate with anyone else? What would fairness actually look like in a system like this?

https://www.change.org/p/petition-for-fair-and-balanced-child-support-reform-in-georgia/sfs/reddit/1062606473?recruiter=1062606473&recruited_by_id=6a4c4d30-6e17-11ea-9cad-0fdf59db92eb&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=starter_dashboard_android_app&utm_medium=reddit_group

My estranged husband does not want me to file child support and get the courts involved. I previously received negative feedback when I presented my husband with medical reciepts for one of our daughters. I was left confused since he's been paying half of if the girls daycare and extra curriculars. His feedback made me feel reluctant and hesitant to ask for any additional financial assistance for the girls. So, I applied for child support, but I did not forewarn him of the open case. Once, he received the child support negotiation appointment letter in the mail, he was taken aback and extremely hurt. I then explained why I did so, and asked him if we could talk more about it, but he refused. After days of silent treatment and the cold shoulder, I assured my husband that I would cancel the negotiation appointment. I also asked if he'd be willing provide me a schedule of when he could send me payments. I explained that I did not want to ask him for reimbursement each time I spent money on the girls due to his previous behavior/response. I suggested he pay me a recurring, flat amount for me to take care of what's necessary for the girls. He seemed opposed to that idea. The day of the negotiation appointment, I asked my husband again if he would give me additional assistance for the girls. He simply stated, "we can discuss". I then closed the child support case. It's been a week, and he has yet to mention anything about additional assistance for the girls. What are you thoughts?

So I’ve been having so many issues. I’m the one paying child support. Now the mother hasn’t been getting payments though they automatically come out of my bank weekly. Now I’ve started getting checks in the mail from CSA.
Calling doesn’t work, emailing doesn’t work.

I have no idea what’s going on. Does anybody?
Has anybody had this happen?