Legal Question in Family Law in New Jersey

child support collection

I applied for child support in january of 1993. my daugters father lives in nj and i live in va. the state of new jersey kept first kept saying that they said the couldn't find the father which was extremely strange being that he was a newark police officer and lived in the same location for many years. then they said they set up a date for the father to come in for the blood test but he didn't show and they were never able to catch up with him again. when last i visited his father 3 years ago, he still lived in the same house. my daughter is now over 18 and now they tell me i can't receive anything because she's too old and my time has expired. she's in college and she needs all the money she can get now. i don't think it's fair that this has happened. is there anything i can do about it? can i file suit against the state of new jersey?


Asked on 6/15/01, 10:13 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Amy L. Finch, 845-362-0387 Amy L. Finch, Attorney and Counselor at Law

Re: child support collection

I would suggest that you file for child support in Virginia, and get an award. Then you will need to go to New Jersey for collection of the child support. With an existing court order, New Jersey will be obligated to help you.

I will also suggest that you try to find him. You can get much information via the internet. This way, once you get the court order, you can present it with his whereabouts to the authorities in New Jersey.

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Answered on 6/29/01, 8:55 am
Lisa Lane McDevitt McDevitt Law Office

Re: child support collection

You are absolutely right in that this is not fair!

It's unfortunate that you never filed in VA because you could have received a court order even without knowing the info that Jersey obviously demanded.

Generally speaking, in most jurisdictions, you cannot seek child support without first filing a petition for a court order prior to the child becoming the age of majority. Do you know whether a petition was filed?

Speak to an attorney because it could be possible that you may be able to now receive child support dating back to the date of the initial action. Since you initially pursued this in Jersey, you'd do well to speak with a Jersey attorney.

Good luck!

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Answered on 6/28/01, 11:14 pm


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