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Hi guys
I have just joined int he hope of finding support for my situation. I am a UK citizen that moved to the USA several years ago. Married and had a daughter born in the US. Divorced when my daughter was 3. My daughter is now 11 years old and lives with her mother. My daughters mother moved twice after the divorce, the first time 600 miles away, then 2,700 miles away. Before her second move away I returned to the UK to assist my elderly parents in 2010, my father has Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and my Mother has had a Stroke. It took 8 months to receive any kind of benefits to help my parents as the main carer. I don't get benefits to assist my responsibility for my daughters well being. I had a few thousand in savings and it's all gone paying child support and basic living expense. By the start of this year I could no longer afford to pay child support. As challenging as this is it had not interfered with my access to speak with my daughter by phone or email. I am an active job seeker as well as being a full time carer to my Mother. My father has now gone into a nursing home due to his deterioration.
My daughters mother just sent me an email stating if I am not paying child support she will no longer answer my phone calls from me to my daughter. My daughter sent me an email and now her mother has stopped that also. She is in contempt of court by doing this. So how do I proceed with legal action with the International nature of the situation and zero funds ? Thanks for any similar experience some of you may have had or links 🙂
Hi 2bafather,
The situation is a little tricky. From what i gather your ex still lives in the US, thus it complicates things exceedingly as you are so far away.
One avenue you could try is to contact the local Courts in the state your daughter is in and inform them of the situation. They should be able to advise on action you can take, equally, these days there are methods that they can use to hold a hearing with a statement from yourself. This will need to outline that:
- Your current situation looking after your parents
- Your continued attempts to continue paying Child Support
- Your ex having stated that if no Child Support is being paid then contact (indirect) is being restricted unfairly
From this, a Judge can still make an Order in your absence based on a statement to have the Contact re-imposed. The difficult side is ascertaining the details of the local Courts, the letters and correspondence and of course the hearing/directions that are likely to be imposed.
If you would like me to clarify something please let me know 🙂
Thanks for taking the time to respond Yoji. I will investigate and google the courts in my daughters district and see what that brings up.Would I be looking up Civil Courts ? As far as I understood the law the financial situation has no bearing on access between parent and child. If deadbeat Dad's still get access.
Cheers 😉
Hi,
As far as i was told, any US Court has and deals with Family Hearings. You are correct, finances and contact are not linked 🙂
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