Help with Custody/Child Support

On the corner of Ridge Road and Congress next door to the synovas bank there is a 2 story building with a glass front called the Dept of Revunue on the 2nd floor you can go in there and file for child support for free with no attorney. As for visits if you both get along well enough to figure out your own routine as in every other weekend and maybe one evening during the week, that would be best. Because in the courts child support has nothing to due with visitations. You would have to go file papers at the court house to get a court date to set up visitations but that is always a last call kinda thing costs money. Hope this helps you if you need anymore help with applying for any kinda assistance to help you along your way please feel free to ask I would be more then happy to help ya out. ;)

N. P

Like someone stated before, you need to file with the Department of Revenue. You will need to call and set up an appointment, the number is in the phone book. The Department of Revenue (State of Florida) will do all the enforcement of the child support order for you. The payments will go through the court system, for tracking purposes. If there ever does come a time when you and your ex do not get along, DOR will enforce the order for you. Also, in the future,if you need to increase the child support amount, DOR does that for you, at not cost. I would give them a call as soon as possible, it could be a couple of months before you can get into the office. If the father could go with you, it will make the process a lot easier for both of you.
Also, I can only assume that you were not married, so they will have to have paternity established on your daughter, just part of the process, so again, if the father will go with you on the day of your appointment, it will make it easier. If you have any more questions, just let me know!
Good luck!!!!

My husbands ex did it herself with out a lawyer. Everything you need is online!

go here! Good luck
http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/childsupport/

There is a Legal Aid group on Massachusettes Ave. They can help you find the proper paper work that you will need and more than likely they can help you do all the filing on your own. I used them many years ago when I filed for divorce, and I found them very helpful. You may want to check them out.

S. -

I would recommend looking online or calling an attorney to get info about local free or reduced cost services or making payments...even mediation would work if you two are on the same page, amiable and have already determined custody, etc. If so, a mediator or in-between could help write all your papers up and then you could just file and have your court hearing without fuss...which is NOT typical with kids.

I wanted to tell you too that support CAN BE based on the visitation. If the non-primary custodial parent sees the child greater than 40% of the overnights, then support is based on the difference of visitation between parents whereas the typical support calculation (when the non-custodial parent sees the child less than 40% of the overnights) would not be based on time, but rather a standard calculation (as was indicated by another response poster). Most mothers/fathers might not realize that once visitation is greater than 40%, there will be a significant reduction in the required compensation to the other parent, since they are seeing the child so close to 50% of the time and need to support the child themselves.... If you two are able to work out a close to 50-50 sharing and decide on a fair support payment to the parent that makes less $...then the court may accept your agreement. You can also elect for NO support, if you each just want to go seperate ways and care for the child when they are with you....but remember, things may change down the road when new spouses enter the picture or you have a difference in opinion.... I would suggest getting some good legal advice, as much as you can afford based on limited funds. If there were no children, it would be different. After it is filed, it is EXPENSIVE and VERY DIFFICULT to go back and change anything...