Legal Question in Family Law in Florida

my fiance signed paperwork terminating his rights to his son in order for his son's stepfather to adopt him. before the adoption was in progress he had been paying child support automatically out of his paychecks. once he signed the paperwork he was told he would no longer be obligated to pay child support since the child was legally adopted and he no longer had any parental rights to him. that was in sept of 2010. since then he is still having child support removed from his checks, had his entire income tax return taken by the irs for "owed support" , and continues to receive notices of backed child support. the adoption was filed in Tennessee (where the child lives) but my fiance and i live in florida. he has contacted both TN child support enforcement office and the Fl child support enforcement office. neither show record of any owed support yet money is still being taken from his checks. please help.


Asked on 6/24/11, 4:09 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Sanford M. Martin Sanford M. Martin, P.A.

Yes, because of the adoption of his son, your fiance has no parental rights or child support obligation. However, he should take action to implement those rights by obtaining the court order which granted such adoption, providing a certified copy to the FL Dept of Children and Families and his employer in order to terminate any deduction from his paycheck. Perhaps his employer is wrongfully deducting the child support; regardless, he has a legal right to have such deductions terminated. He must also notify the IRS of the adoption. He is entitled to tax credits from the IRS. It is a tangled network of agencies to deal with, but, based on the facts presented, he must use the adoption court order and/or paperwork from the Tennessee child support agency, his employer, and the IRS to terminate the deductions and penalties.

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Answered on 6/24/11, 4:26 pm


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