A court order for child support will result in a public record being made. In most child support situations, the order is made as part of a divorce case. If the parents were never married, the order is made in a civil case that is filed by one of the parents or the district attorney's office. Finding the records of a child support case requires knowing some information about the parties to the case and understanding court jurisdictions. A thorough search strategy may include a search of online records and a search of records at the court where the case was filed.
Step 1
Obtain all the identifying information available for the person that is subject to the child support order for the case you want to find. You will need the person's full name and an address history for about a 10-year period---longer if you a looking for a much older case. You can use a commercial skip-tracing company so long as you provide a name and last known address.
Step 2
Analyze the address trace history you obtained to determine the states and counties where the person has lived. All child support cases are filed in the state court located in the county where the person resides. For example, if the address trace showed that the person resided in Los Angeles County, California, any child support case would have been filed in the California Superior Court in Los Angeles County.
Step 3
Locate the website for the court to determine what family law case information, if any, is available online. Nearly all state courts have a website, with many providing access to court records online, such as in California at the Los Angeles County Superior Court and in Florida at the Orange County Circuit Court. Search for the person's name in the family law records, which include all divorce cases. If the child support order was made as part of a divorce, you will find the case in these records. If family law records are not available online, go in person to the clerk's office at the courthouse to search these records. If the parents were never married, any child support order would have been made in a civil court case; search these records as well.
Step 4
Locate the county office that handles child support cases, if you are unable to find a child support case in either the civil or family court records. In some major cities, such as Los Angeles, special courts may be established solely to process child support cases filed by the district attorney's office. You will likely have to go the clerk's office for this court to search for a child support case.
Tips and Warnings
- A few states, such as Connecticut, parts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts, do not designate their state courts by county; however, within each county there will be a state court district with the courthouse typically located in the largest city or cities within the county.
