Can I receive child support for my son since I received no support of
any kind, wasn't able to work for medical reasons, had no income at
all except the retirement fund I had saved ? If so, how do I go about
it or, if not, what is the legal reason?
We share 50/50 custody. I was afraid to ask him for financial help as
it makes him angry and I feel guilty. In fact,whatever I do, I want to
do the best I can to make sure its done properly/legally as well as
without hostility. I see he is easily frustrated with our son and
don't want to "fuel the fire" in case there is any correlation between
the two.
Currently I am in dire straights: lost my apartment, medical plan, and
am selling personal belongings while living with my son in one room
and always bordering on moving into my car. I took a part-time job
which amounts to approx. $720 a month. Its a start and best I can do
right now though I have higher ambitions. My former husband has an
excellent attorney who seems to elicit feelings of fear and submission
from my attorney who, like my husband, saw all this happening in my
life and my son's, but took no action despite hopeful but not
assertive requests/hints since January. One final fact: when I
recently called for advice from City/Gov't Dept of Child Support I was
connected with the D.A. who said "by all means" I should be receiving
child support under these circumstances. I guess that phone call
mentioned in passing when I next asked ex for help made a difference
though I still have no written agreement, check stubs or
salary/benefits info, no proof I am receiving correct amount (he
attempted to hide almost $30k during divorce - thatI know of)and am
told I will get the June allotment after the end of June when his
sales commissions are accounted for. Meanwhile, I can't
pay bills or buy food. I can use the procedes from personal belongings
to raise $850 - should I use it to pay an attorney ?is this the best
approach ? If I need one I want one that will stand up to former
husbands attorney..how can I find that attorney?

Dear usaycheez-ga;

Thank you for allowing me to answer your interesting question. Keep in
mind that our forum here is not intended to function as or take the
place of legal advice. One is always better off to consult a licensed
practicing attorney about legal matters.

Now, having mentioned al that legal stuff let?s get on to your questions:
. . . . . . . 

?Can I receive child support for my son since I received no support of
any kind, wasn't able to work for medical reasons, had no income at
all except the retirement fund I had saved ??

The short answer to your question is ?YES?. Anyone, whether they are
in an adverse financial situation or financially comfortable, CAN
theoretically get support from an ex-spouse provided your case is
convincing enough to the court to necessitate such an order. On the
other hand, to address your situation specifically, it is not uncommon
fro a family court to review a case when circumstances dramatically
change (i.e., very safe and stable to very unpredictable and unstable)
? especially when the welfare of the child is at issue. In other
words, if you can file an order with the court, showing evidence of a
substantial and material change in circumstances, the court will
undoubtedly investigate the issue and consider your request.

. . . . . . . 

?If so, how do I go about it or, if not, what is the legal reason??

Short of convincing your ex-spouse to agree to pay support on his own
without a court order the only enforceable way to go about it is to
notify the jurisdictional court (usually the one that issued the
original decree) of the dramatic change in your finances and file a
motion to have the original custody and support obligations amended in
the interest of welfare of the minor child. You CAN, with some insight
into these matters, file the motion on your own without an attorney,
but your best bet is to obtain an attorney who is knowledgeable about
these issues so he or she can guide you through this process.

In my opinion, having had many years of experience in directing people
to legal aid resources through my own career in law enforcement, your
best move at this point in to contact California Legal Aid (sometimes
called California Legal Services). California Legal Services provides
free legal assistance to low-income, disenfranchised and indigent
families throughout California in a variety of legal matters. Services
range from advice-only to full representation in certain cases. At the
very least you?d be able to learn more about your specific situation
from a legal professional and at best you?d be able to retain a lawyer
free of charge to help you with your case.

. . . . . . . 

?I can use the proceeds from personal belongings to raise $850 -
should I use it to pay an attorney? Is this the best approach??

Using Legal Aid, clients do frequently get their attorney?s fee waived
because of their impoverished situations but they are often required
top pay filing fees or court costs. If you have only a limited amount
of financial resources its probably best to hang onto it for now if
you can so you will have those funds available to you if you have to
pay for these incidental fees related to your case.

CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS
http://www.dca.ca.gov/r_r/legalso1.htm

LEGAL AID ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA (LAAC)
http://www.pic.org/laac/laacpage.htm

There are also a number of other resources out there where you can
potentially obtain free or low cost legal assistance. Here is a
directory of agencies and organizations, some of which may very well
suit your needs depending on where you are located and what your
specific needs are:

DIRECTORY OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA LEGAL SERVICES PROGRAMS
http://www.pic.org/resx/direclsp.htm

. . . . . . . 

"If I need one I want one that will stand up to former husbands
attorney?how can I find that attorney?

Honestly, there?s no way to know if you can find an attorney who ?will
stand up to former husbands attorney? if you don?t ask around ? and
even that is no guarantee that you will find one. My guess though is
that you probably will if you do the footwork. The only way to answer
this for certain is to make some inquires and find out which attorneys
are willing to assist you. To do this you might consider using the
California Department of Consumer Affairs Legal Aid Lawyer Referral
Service, which can greatly reduce the number of potential attorneys
down to a workable number and prevent you from having to make hundreds
of unnecessary telephone calls. Their web site says this in part:

?Most lawyer referral services charge a low or nominal fee to make an
appointment for you to see a lawyer for approximately a half hour. If
you decide to hire the lawyer, you will pay the regular attorney fee
for the legal work you need.

Many lawyer referral services offer specialists in various fields of
law, such as personal injury and family law. Many programs have
reduced fee plans for people who cannot afford the regular fees.

Lawyer referral services are available in most counties in California.
They are usually listed in the yellow pages of your local telephone
directory under "Attorney Referral Services," "Attorneys," or
"Lawyers."
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS LEGAL AID LAWYER REFERRAL SERVICE
http://www.dca.ca.gov/r_r/lawrefe1.htm

. . . . . . . 

I think you?d be well off to read these articles related to modifying
custody and support orders in California when there us a SUBSTANTIAL
AND MATERIAL CHANGE IN CIRCUMSTANCES with one or more parties
involved.


?Every Citizen's right to know and use the law - without hiring a
lawyer - is fundamental to American Democracy. The law, like any other
information, can be broken down and organized into small, easily
understandable sections and bits. The 'bits' can then be put together
to complete a larger task. Making the process easier is our commitment
to the public.?
MODIFYING CHILD SUPPORT, CUSTODY, & VISITATION IN CALIFORNIA
http://www.cyberstation.net/~paralegal/camodify.htm#change

THE PROCESS OF MODIFICATION
http://www.cyberstation.net/~paralegal/camodify.htm#process


This article might be helpful in answer some of your questions about
your ex-spouse?s potential responsibility to provide your child with
health insurance, support and other benefits due to your dramatic
change in financial circumstances:

CALIFORNIA COURTS SELF HELP CENTER
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/family/support/supqna.htm

Be sure and read these related links also:

CALIFORNIA COURTS SELF HELP CENTER
Free & Low-Cost Legal Help
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/lowcost/

CALIFORNIA COURTS SELF HELP CENTER
Families & Children
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/family/




I hope you find that my research exceeds your expectations. If you
have any questions about my research please post a clarification
request prior to rating the answer. Otherwise I welcome your rating
and your final comments and I look forward to working with you again
in the near future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga ? Google Answers Researcher



INFORMATION SOURCES

DEFINED ABOVE


SEARCH STRATEGY


SEARCH ENGINE USED:

Google ://www.google.com


SEARCH TERMS USED:

CALIFORNIA

LEGAL SERVICES

LEGAL AID

LEGAL ASSISTANCE

LEGAL ADVICE

CHILD SUPPORT

CHANGE IN CIRCUMSTANCES

MODIFYING SUPPORT

ATTORNEYS

---

Clarification of Answer by tutuzdad-ga on 24 Jun 2004 15:40 PDT

My friend and fellow researcher Pinkfreud-ga also graciously points
out this link which is full of informative links and may very well
serve to further educate you on your potential alternatives:

ASSOCIATION FOR CHILDREN FOR ENFORCEMENT OF SUPPORT (ACES)
http://www.childsupport-aces.org/

Regards;
tutuzdad-ga

If you have 50/50 custody, you have 50/50 financial responsibility. 
What makes you think that he should shoulder your responsibility, too?
 Child support is for parents with sole custody, since they're
supporting the child at all times except a couple of weekends a month.
 If your ex-husband has your son 50% of the time, he's already
directly paying 50% of your son's expenses.  Why should he pay more
than half just because of your own financial circumstances?  If you
can't meet your responsibility for your son, maybe your ex-husband
should have sole custody.

Dear usaycheez,

Without making this comment specific to your situation, I think it is
a mistake to assume that child support issues  will somehow be too
complicated to resolve without lawyers. In most jurisdictions, with
the exception of very high income cases, child support is resolved by
virtue of written guidelines or formulas. (As the answer above
indicates, California uses a statewide formula.) Under a typical
formula, support is calculated based primarily upon the amount of
income earned by each parent, the amount of time the children spend
with each parent, and the number of dependent children (including
children from prior or subsequent relationships) who are in their
households, with other expenses also considered.

It is not uncommon for people to resolve child support issues without
using attorneys, or to resolve post-divorce support issues (e.g.,
adjustment to take into consideration changes in income) without
lawyers. Many states offer quite good guidance as to helping yourself
through a child support issue - I would be surprised if such a guide
does not exist somewhere for the State of California.

With regard to the comment above, that if there is roughly equal
parenting time no support should be paid, the fact is that when there
are significant discrepancies in earning power child support can
remain both necessary and very appropriate.

With regard to your comments above, I would have been reluctant to
delve into this inquiry without a lot more information, as it is
difficult to discern the status of your case or what approach to your
situation would best suit you.

In many cases, where child support is appropriate and the spouses
separate prior to the resolution of a divorce, a temporary child
support order is put into effect. If the temporary amount is later
determined to be incorrect, there may be some subsequent adjustment of
the figure (and an associated surplus or arrearage), but the temporary
order helps ensure that the children are properly supported while the
divorce proceedings are resolved. If you have some issues relating to
divorce or custody which are pending, you should ask your lawyer about
the possibility of a temporary support order. If no prior order
exists, it is extremely unlikely that the judge will not issue an
order of support based upon the state guidelines or formula at the
conclusion of any custody or support proceedings (or otherwise find
that no support is due under the guidelines).

It is difficult to tell from your description what support your ex- is
already obligated to pay. That is, whether the payment you are
expecting at the end of June represents part of the property
settlement from a divorce judgment, represents spousal support,
represents child support, or reflects some combination of the above.
Without clarification on what that support payment is for, it is
impossible to guess whether or not you are entitled to additional
support.

If your divorce litigation is still pending, you should still be able
to consult your own attorney about these issues. If the divorce is
resolved, you may well benefit from having your situation reviewed by
counsel, and as suggested above you should try to see if you qualify
for legal aid. If your divorce has been concluded and a judgment has
been entered, and you are not presently working with an attorney, you
may even wish to consult with a lawyer about your situation (taking
with you to the meeting all of your divorce paperwork) even if this
means paying for a couple of hours of consultation time. But you
should not feel intimidated about petitioning for child support, and
if you cannot afford a lawyer at this time you should nonetheless look
into the procedure for filing a petition for support on your own
behalf. The odds are that the clerks in the family court can provide
you with the appropriate forms and perhaps even some instructional
material on how to properly petition for support. (Or perhaps the
friendly prosecutor you spoke with can steer you in the right
direction.)

- expertlaw