I just discovered I may be the father of a 22 year old. Am I liable for back child support?
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Without knowing what has happened to cause you to ask this question as well as having no idea where you live, anyone would be ill advised to offer very much advise as this will probably be a legal matter and no one here is qualified to answer truly legal questions.
That said; if you are in the US and you have received some sort of legal notice that you owe back child support you should take all papers to an attorney who deals in family matters. You should be able to ask for a free consultation to see where you stand and also what the attorney will charge for their services.
I would get proof (dna test) to make sure you are the father, then take it from there. Contact Child support enforcement in your state, to know your rights.
None of us here are lawyers and to give advise like this is out of our league. You really need to speak to a professional and ask these questions. I am not sure how it works and it appears the mother did not inform you when the child was very young. This is sort of hard to tell if the court will make you pay now or not. Is the mother coming after you after all these years. She should have filed for child support years ago if she wanted you to pay any for your child. My best advise to you is to see legal advise from a lawyer or even get some help from the courts in your area.
Thank you for your reply. The child was conceived and grew up in Florida. I have lived in GA for 16 years. The mother isn't asking for child support but I'm preparing for the worst (back child support) and hoping for the best (Getting to know my daughter and embracing her as part of my family).
Child support starts from when it is applied for. Since you just recently discovered you are a father, of an adult child there will be no child support.
I am not a lawyer but I would say no. That ship sailed a long time ago, and you were never informed
It would be different if the mother had been looking for you all these years and you had been hiding, and suddenly you resurfaced - then most likely a judgment would exist against you.
but this case does not sound like that
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