Understanding Child Support Collection
Typically, the child support collection process in each state is setup to be as easy as possible. There is usually a simple form for the collecting parent to fill out — it requests information about the non-custodial parent as well as yourself. If you have problems with the form most states usually provide a free hot line and support.
Once child support collection has been setup and you start experiencing problems with a parent not paying their child support most states will also help you enforce the child support laws. The more knowledge you have about the non-custodial parent the better. If you know that they're currently employed, you can file an income withholding form with your local court house. If you're unaware of the other parents employment status or even their location then your next resort would be your local child support enforcement office. They can usually take the whole collection process over (for a minor fee.) They do this day in and day out so it's usually a lot easier to let them handle your child support collection for you.
Unfortunately, in some stats the child support enforcement divisions are not what they used to be. Using a private attorney can sometimes yield faster results, but of course, this will cost you more in most cases. It never hurts to ask the local child support office what kind of turn-around they usually experience with their collections. If the answer isn't what you're looking for you may want to call a few local child support collection attorneys. Sometimes spending a little extra to speed up the whole collection process can get your child support quicker and help out your overall situation more.