Child Support from Current Husband for Child of Another Relationship

[Xena]

My question involves child support in the State of: California

I am currently going through child support I hav claimed three children one of which is not his, she is from a previous relationship, but he was ok being her father and marrying me. We met when she was a few months born, but now we are divorcing but he does not want to give child support for the daughter that is not his, he was fine calling her his daugther until we started seperating, then he started saying shes nothing to him. Is is legal in the state of California for me to add her to my child support claim? She is now 9 years old, so she still believes she is his daughter we have not told her she is not, since he raised her all her life.

Your question is: "Is it legal in the state of California for me to add her to my child support claim?"

The answer, for ALL states, including CA is NO! It is called paternity fraud.
Paternity fraud is when a Mother attempts to claim that a man is the legal father while KNOWING that he is neither the bio father nor the legal father.

Of course, this means that if he does contest the CS, you will have the choice of doing 2 things:
1. You can admit that he is not the bio-father and that you married AFTER the child was born. If you take this choice, (which happens to be the best one) you will need to find the bio-father and file to establish paternity and CS from him. Of course, since your STBX is not, and will not be the legal father, he will have no rights for visitation, etc of that child.

2. You can refuse to admit and attempt to claim that he should pay CS AND be allowed custody and visitation rights based on him being the step-father for 9 years. If you take this choice, it can get to be very expensive for you. Your STBX will have the right to demand a DNA test (which YOU will have to pay for) all he has to do is produce a copy of that child's BC and a copy of your marriage license showing that you were married after the child was born.
Once the expensive DNA test proves that he is not the bio-father the court cannot order him to pay CS. At that point you'll be back to the same outcome as before- you'll have to get CS from the bio-father, only it will have cost you alot more money.

[CourtClerk]

I am right and wrong....

I thought California was one of two states to exclude this law, but the fact is California is one if not the only state to include this law:

In the State of California. If the step-parent has taken on the day-to-day role of parent and the child has come to see the step-parent as the parent is liability imposed. In fact our rule is so strict that only if the step-parent has reprented to the child that he is the true parent intending the child to rely on that and only if the child believed that to be true is liability imposed--in other words the step-parent has to have interferred with the child's ability to know that someone else out there is the true parent. He can be ordered to pay child support for that child.

This is very difficult to prove but it is possible in the State of California.

Statute PLEASE!!! I'd really like to read where this is based on truth.

[Lawrence084]

Statute PLEASE!!! I'd really like to read where this is based on truth.

The information is all over the internet. Just google "California De Facto Parent Doctrine" or "California in locus parentis"

Here are a few comments from actual California lawyers replying back to people who ask similar questions as the OP.

If a woman or a man comes into a relationship with a child from another marriage, and their common law spouse takes over a parenting role, that person would generally be required to pay child support. This is called standing in locus parentis. For example, the courts look at how long you have been living with the children, whether you were involved in disciplining them, you attended parent-teacher interviews, you were called “dad” or “mom”, you helped financially support the children and all of the other circumstances to determine whether you are “in locus parentis”.

In California, where I practice, the answer is an easy "no" in your situation. We only impose step-parent liability for support after a finding by a court that the step-parent has taken on and assumed the role as the parent in the child's life and the child has come to see the step-parent as the "real" parent. In fact the rule is so difficult to satisfy that some say commentators say that the step-parent has to do something to interfer with the child finding out who the biological parent really is before liability can be imposed. This is sometimes called "parentage by estoppel", or the "de facto parent doctrine." So, unless you as a step-parent have voluntarily become a de facto parent in the child's life, and the child has come to see you as his or her parent, there's no support obligation in California.

[CourtClerk]

The information is all over the internet. Just google "California De Facto Parent Doctrine" or "California in locus parentis"

Here's where I like to get my info from...

leginfo.ca.gov

[Lawrence084]

Here's where I like to get my info from...

leginfo.ca.gov

I am sure it the right place to get it, but it slow and not to user friendly. I am sure it is 1000% more accurate than what I find Googling.

Is there anything on this subject at that site? I am guessing not, because you ask me to prove it.

I probably wrong, but I think she has something to look in to if she decide to try to add the child to the CS order. There are some key elements she never mention. Child last name, papers with the child name listed as a dependant or beneficary to the step-father, why is the the bio-father out of the picture, has she ever recieved any money from the bio-father...ect. But then again, it might not be worth the effort based on the fact she already claiming two other children.

My goal was to give her food for thought and a path to search, before going to court.

The fact she hasn't responded probably says she has given up the idea or decided not listen and go ahead.

[CourtClerk]

You want to talk slow and not too user friendly? Try trying to find a code in the Family Code hard copy while your judge is waiting intently for you to find it...

The site itself is MUCH more user friendly than the book itself, which is a pain in the patootie. However, I know how to use it and all of the shortcute, so I've got an inside edge. For instance, if you check one of the boxes after you go to California Law and don't search for a specific statute, it will bring up the entire code, with an index, which is how I find things easily - and yes, it's the site where every law written in CA is found. Each and every one.

However, I don't know how much of a key element the child's last name and the like are as of much importance. The OP's current husband, unless she's leaving something out is not the legal father of this child and she'd find no where in a petition where she can list this child without committing perjury.

[amartin828]

Thank you for the responses, I am grateful for the information given. But quoting Lawrence,

"In fact the rule is so difficult to satisfy that some say commentators say that the step-parent has to do something to interfer with the child finding out who the biological parent really is before liability can be imposed."

He has interferred by destroying pictures and other personal property that had to do with her biological father.

Also "If a woman or a man comes into a relationship with a child from another marriage, and their common law spouse takes over a parenting role, that person would generally be required to pay child support. This is called standing in locus parentis. For example, the courts look at how long you have been living with the children, whether you were involved in disciplining them, you attended parent-teacher interviews, you were called “dad” or “mom”, you helped financially support the children and all of the other circumstances to determine whether you are “in locus parentis”."

He was involved with discipline, school meetings and helped financially supported her for 9 years. And by the way we are not liars, the reason we have not told her who her Biological Father is because, He attempted to Kidnap and murder me while I was pregnant with her and he is currently in prison for more violent crimes. Thank you for the people who kept it at a legal stand point. Her last name is of her Bio-father, her step father has added her to his taxes every year as well as to his health insurance and dependents at work. The bio father was never put on Child Support because the Step Father did not want my daughter to have any contact with her bio-father.

[Dogmatique]

Thank you for the responses, I am grateful for the information given. But quoting Lawrence,

"In fact the rule is so difficult to satisfy that some say commentators say that the step-parent has to do something to interfer with the child finding out who the biological parent really is before liability can be imposed."

He has interferred by destroying pictures and other personal property that had to do with her biological father.

Also "If a woman or a man comes into a relationship with a child from another marriage, and their common law spouse takes over a parenting role, that person would generally be required to pay child support. This is called standing in locus parentis. For example, the courts look at how long you have been living with the children, whether you were involved in disciplining them, you attended parent-teacher interviews, you were called “dad” or “mom”, you helped financially support the children and all of the other circumstances to determine whether you are “in locus parentis”."

He was involved with discipline, school meetings and helped financially supported her for 9 years. And by the way we are not liars, the reason we have not told her who her Biological Father is because, He attempted to Kidnap and murder me while I was pregnant with her and he is currently in prison for more violent crimes. Thank you for the people who kept it at a legal stand point. Her last name is of her Bio-father, her step father has added her to his taxes every year as well as to his health insurance and dependents at work. The bio father was never put on Child Support because the Step Father did not want my daughter to have any contact with her bio-father.

Why did you let stepdad dictate such things?

The court WILL want to know.

Listen to Court Clerk.

Your child deserves to know where she came from. You HAVE lied to her. You can fix it.