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Under family law, parents have a legal obligation to support their minor children financially. If you and the child’s other parent are not together, you may want to meet with an attorney to implement a child support order to ensure the other party’s continual contributions. Here’s a handy guide on how you and your attorney will work to secure financial support for your family.

How to Establish Paternity 

If you have never been married to your child’s other parent, parentage must be established before you can request a child support order. In many cases, fathers acknowledge paternity voluntarily, which will suffice. A Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment form may have been signed at the child’s birth. 

If this is not your situation, your attorney may request genetic testing to confirm paternity.

How to Get Child Support Payments

child supportOnce parentage has been established, your attorney will request child support according to your state’s child support guidelines.  If the court orders child support to be paid to you, you will start receiving payments through the child support agency. 

Income withholding collects child support for most child support orders. The child support agency and/or your attorney will send a withholding notice to their employer. There are many additional ways courts legally enforce payment orders if a parent fails to pay according to a child support order, such as by denying passports, placing liens on property, and taking federal payments, such as income tax refunds.

For help securing child support, turn to Guillien Van Nuland LLC in La Crosse, WI. Backed by more than 50 years of combined experience, their highly knowledgeable team is here to answer your questions while protecting your best interests at every stage of the proceedings. They represent clients throughout Buffalo, Crawford, Juneau, Monroe, Trempealeau, and Vernon counties in Wisconsin, and Fillmore, Houston, and Winona counties in Minnesota. Learn more about their family law services online, or call (608) 782-4411 to request a consultation.

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