The Common Law

The attorneys in the Texas attorney general's child support division do not represent either parent in a child support matter. The AG's child support division does, however, encourage parental responsibility by providing services for the benefit of Texas children. The fundamental services provided by the Child Support Division include locating absent parents; establishing paternity; establishing, enforcing, and modifying child and medical support orders; and collecting and distributing child support monies.

You can submit an application to receive these services with Child Support Division field offices throughout the state. You can also get the application by calling the AG's office at 800/252-8014 or applying online at childsupport.oag.state.tx.us.

Even with assistance from the AG's office, it is difficult to estimate how long it will take for you to start receiving child support payments (assuming that you do receive them). The AG's Web site states that "obtaining child support involves a wide variety of factors, making it difficult to predict the time required to secure payments on individual cases."

Some cases may require a longer delay because the AG's office will have to use their full array of services. For example, the AG's office may have to locate the absent parent and establish his paternity, get a court order that states the amount of child support due, and then enforce that court order. Alternatively, in cases that involve an existing court order with detailed information on the parent who owes child support, receiving payments may be as easy as withholding child support from that parent's paycheck.

In short, numerous factors will effect how long it takes to recover child support. Try to provide as much information as possible to the AG's office in order to help speed up the process. Be patient and vigilant – you have every right to recover child support from the noncustodial parent!