It is the responsibility of each parent to ensure that children are adequately cared for whether the parents are living together or in a relationship. After a divorce, one parent is often obligated to pay child support to the parent who cares for the children most of the time. If you’re getting a divorce in New Jersey, keep this information in mind as you exercise your rights and responsibilities as a parent.
Privacy and confidentiality
In New Jersey, your child support case will be both confidential and private. The information you disclose during your case is retained by the Child Support Program but is not available for public record. This may help some parents feel more at ease when submitting income information or discussing sensitive post-divorce family matters with the judge.
Both parents are obligated to see that their child has basic necessities such as food, clothing, and shelter. No matter what the child’s living situation is, both parents should provide the support for a child to grow into a healthy, well-adjusted adult.
Involved parties in a child support case
Every child support case involves two parties: the payee and the payor. The payee is usually the parent with primary custody of the child which means this parent is likely providing more hands-on care than the non-custodial parent. The payor is the parent who does not live in the home with the child.
What rights and responsibilities do parents have?
Under the child support program in New Jersey, parents have the right to be treated with respect and should be notified as soon as possible if there are changes in the child support case. Parents also have the right to submit and receive child support payments in a timely manner.
Parents are responsible for informing the child support office of any changes to child custody or other factors that will affect the amount or frequency of child support payments. Parents are also obligated to attend all scheduled court hearings and to cooperate if asked to submit additional evidence in court.