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Introduction to Child Support
by: New Mexico Legal Aid

Child Support Guide

This handbook is meant to teach you about child support. Issues dealing with child support are very hard to understand. This book cannot deal with or solve all of them. You may need the help of lawyer. You may need to talk to the Child Support Enforcement Division of The Human Services Department of New Mexico.

What is child support?

Child support is the legal job of both parents. They are supposed to take care of the needs of their dependent children. Sometimes we think of child support only as a way of getting the money needed to take care of children. It is more than that. It means having medical coverage. It means child care. It can mean following the law about seeing the children. It can mean following the law about custody.

Money for child support is meant to supply a home, food and clothing for the children.

Child Support is a very hard thing to deal with. The person who receives the money is always worried about getting it. The person sending the money is always worried about having to send it.

The children feel badly because they are in the middle.

Both parents have jobs to do while receiving child support.

Just because the father is sending the money needed for support, it is not true that he is the one with the hardest job.

Many times it is the mother who has the hardest job financially.

Helpful Tip: Child support is an issue that is always trouble for both parents. They go from one emergency to another.

It is important that the parents learn to deal with each other. It is important for themselves. It is especially important for the children.

Visitation Tip: The court handles child support and visitation as two separate issues. Their should not be a breakdown of payments or visits. One does not depend on the other. Go to the court to solve the problem.

Child Support Laws

Can I handle my own child support case?

Child support laws are very hard to understand. It takes a long time and costs a lot of money to make someone obey them. Many people cannot afford to hire a lawyer. The best thing for you to do is to learn about the laws of child support.

Start by learning how the courts work. Lean how the child enforcement division works. When you know how these work, you have a better chance to get what you want from them. You will have what you need for your children. You will not be in financial danger.

Helpful Tip: The laws about child support in New Mexico are found in the New Mexico Statutes Annotated, Chapter 40, Domestic Affairs. You can get help finding these laws from a law library.

Last Reviewed On: 05/12/04

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