Child support law in Alabama

[OHHECKNO]

what's the law for the state of alabama when it comes to child support. a man has been paying child support for a child 16 years. he claimed that was his child and now paternity had been established through private testing, which proves he not the sons father. the father wants to stop the child support and disown the child. this is the only father the child has ever know. he has always paid child support and acknowleged the boy as his son until 2 months ago.please advise...also the father stated during the 1st court appearance that he didn't want a paternity test that he know that was his son

[aaron]

Alabama law provides for revisiting a prior declaration that a particular person is the father, on the basis of DNA tests which establish that he is not:

(a) Upon petition of the defendant in a paternity proceeding where the defendant has been declared the legal father, the case shall be reopened if there is scientific evidence presented by the defendant that he is not the father. The court shall admit into evidence any scientific test recognized by the court that has been conducted in accordance with established scientific principles or the court may order a blood test, or a Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid test of the mother, father, and child. Whenever the court orders a test and any of the persons to be tested refuse to submit to the test, the fact shall be disclosed at the trial, unless good cause is shown.

(b) The test shall be made by a qualified expert approved by the court. The expert may be called by the court or any party as a witness to testify to the test results and shall be subject to cross-examination by the parties. The test results may be admitted into evidence. If more than one test is performed and the results are conflicting, none of the test results shall be admissible as evidence of paternity or nonpaternity.

(c) Compensation of the expert witness shall be paid by the petitioner.

(d) In the event the child has been adopted the matter of paternity may not be reopened under this chapter.

[OHHECKNO]

ok, but what are the chances that the mother will have to repay the child support already paid to the child.....the father just don't want to pay the arears to the child...they judge informedd the father that he is still responsible for the arears because he willinging admitted to paternity even after he was offered a paternity test for the boy in court. not sure I understand what's going on. please help...is the father still responsible for the arears and current support until the case is closed? the case was reopened because the mother wanted to prove to him that he was the father but the test said otherwise....what are her chances for the son as far as keeping the alleged father as his father. if the father is not trying to disestablish paternity but just don't want to continue pay child support. Should the mother drop the entire case. the son is devastated to know that the father he has known for 16 years is not his father...what's best for the child. should the mother persue the case or just have it dismissed

[aaron]

Don't count on any refund.

There's no option of "giving up your rights so you don't have to pay support, but keeping visitation rights". If the man wants to be the father, the court will continue the support order. If not, and the court holds that he is not the child's father, he loses any visitation rights. It may be possible for the mother to voluntarily waive support.

The parents should sit down and try to figure out what is best for the child, and how to best resolve the case.

[OHHECKNO]

this is a man that no one can talk with..his new wife is behind all of this before her he didn't want any paternity test or anything. but since she has a lot of money it seems she's paying for everything and just trying to make it seem like the son's mother is a nobody. by choice can the hold the mother responsible for paying the father back the child support he's already paid for the son? what would be the best interest for the son..he still calls this man his father...said he doesn't know or have ever been told of anyone else. he is devastated and is having problems dealing with the issue. the mother has not closed her current child support case because she was advised not to at the last court appearance. she wants the case closed because he's not paying anything but was wondering about the arears since he was the sons father for 16 years. is she entitled to the arears since this is not a fraud case. if she doesn't close the case is the man still responsible for paying the support if he's not trying to disestablish paternity