NCP and CP Married (Sept. 2005)
Question: Is there any black and white on whether or a not a marriage between the cp and ncp terminates the paternity order or whether or not it closes current support. Also, should a new order be executed to make the married couple pay State owed money for a grant if the child is living with another relative and not living in the martial home of the cp and ncp?
Answer: The answer is no. There are no Federal or State laws on whether a marriage can nullify a paternity order. An order establishing paternity or a valid acknowledgement of paternity is generally considered to be a final order. The custodial parent may request discontinuance of services when the noncustodial parent moves back into the home. Current support may be closed, but if arrearages are owed, the case must be kept open as an arrearage only case.
Yes, when a child is in out of home care, a new court order should be entered for both the father and the mother. According to Prosecutor's Handbook Section 23.000/Operations' Manual Section 31.000, Foster Care, "When both parents are absent from the child's home each parent's obligation is set separately, using only his or her verified financial information, the CS-71, and the Child Support Guideline. (It does not matter if the parents are living together or apart.) The absent father owes 100% (rather than a proportionate share) of the obligation based on his income, allowable deductions, and the appropriate number of children. The same is true for the absent mother.
If new support orders are not entered at the time of commitment of the child to foster care, the old support order remains in effect until the new orders become effective. If the old order is payable to CFC, it continues to be payable to CFC. If the old order is not payable to CFC, payee conversion action is taken to make it payable to CFC until the time that judicial action can be taken to enter new orders for the support of the child."