In a typical Minnesota child support proceeding, there are two parties involved, the Mother and the Father. However, sometimes, the County in which the child support proceeding is taking place is added as a party. This can be quite confusing for many clients. Our office receives many phone calls from clients who receive child support paperwork from the County, asking them to raise or lower their child support payments. If the child support payment is typically only exchanged between the Mother and the Father, why does the County get involved? As an example, let’s assume that Tom was served with paperwork from the County, asking to raise his child support payment that he was paying to his ex-girlfriend, Laura, for support of their daughter, Jane. Tom was confused as to why the County was involved at all, especially because he was paying his child support payments directly to Laura. The reason why the County was involved in Tom’s case was because Laura, when she was pregnant with Jane and for the first 3 years of Jane’s life, received public assistance. For 3 years, Laura was on MinnesotaCare, which provided health insurance coverage for her and her child, Jane. During that time, MinnesotaCare paid for Laura’s labor and delivery of Jane, as well as the early childhood healthcare. As a result of providing public assistance, the County automatically becomes a party to the child support proceeding because it was financially contributing to this family. In situations like this, the County becomes involved when any of the parties applies for public assistance, receives public assistance, or has received public assistance in the past. Our office is experienced with situations when the County is a party to your proceeding. If your case involves the County as a party, contact our Minnesota Paternity Attorneys for a free consultation. For more information, visit Minn. Stat. 518A.44, Minn. Stat. 518A. 45, Minn. Stat. 518A.46, Minn. Stat. 518A.48, Minn. Stat. 518A.50, Minn. Stat. 518A.51, and Minn. Stat. 518A.52
Do you have questions about Public Assistance and how it may affect your Child Support proceeding? Our Minnesota Child Support Attorneys are here to help. Call 952-800-2025 today or click below to schedule a consultation.
