Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

My son is 8 years old and I have raised him without the help of his biological father so far. There has been no contact whatsoever for the past 6 years. A child support case has been opened for 6 years now with the obligation set to the minimum because he has not held employment at all since my son was a baby. I have recently applied for another child support case review in accordance with Virginia state regulations and hope to get some headway this time, other than the usual, "well Ms W. you are 95% responsible for the financial obligation due to the unemployment of the non custodial parent. So I am following the direction of the Division of Child Support Enforcement on that part. My real question is I requested a name change for a minor for my son to have my last name. I know the courts make decisions based on the best interest of the children in such cases but I truly beleive that in this particular instance, continuing to raise my son IS in the best interest of him. And to add to this, my son has been diagnosed with a Pervasive Developemental Disorder (PDD) known as autism and his ability to adapt to the unfamiliar is difficult enough. He has chosen not to be involed this long and I think things can continue in this order. Do you think I have a case here?

Asked on 2/19/13, 9:19 am

Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

0 users found helpful

0 attorneys agreed

That will be up to the judge of the circuit court assigned to hear and rule on the matter.

Answered on 2/20/13, 8:05 am

Keywords

Match Any Match All

Country

State

Area of Law