Santa Clara County Department of Child Support Services

They claim to be open till 5 but really it’s more like 4:45. promises and lies just like everything else.

This is an update. Commissioner Joseph is probably the fairest judge you will get in Santa Clara County. For both parents, MALE and FEMALE.
FYI: If you ex wife shows up to court without a job and other excuses. File Works Orders to force her to get a job. It is responsibility for both parents to work and take care of child. Not just the father paying everything including child’s medical expenses.
I can see why so many workers of Santa Clara county don’t like him because he is fair. At least Commissioner Josef has common sense and reviews both sides.

I would give this department negative stars if I could. They don’t care about the kids and the judges that just look at the number chart are even worse. They do no good whatsoever for anyone. The employees that work here have the worst attitude. I hope they don’t get a pension. Trying to get answers and service is miserable here. This place and the horrible courts are garbage.

child support is ONLY concerned about their share of funds. Don’t care if you are homeless, hungry, have dirty ripped clothes or shoes. Pay them their share so they can keep their lazy ass employees a job. It’s a shame how this government works.

jerks

I am updating my review with the option to down grade at any time based on follow-​through, or lack there of. I recently went to court and can finally consider it a win. Deadbeat dad ordered to pay, regardless he says he only works 20 hours per week or not (man do I love the phrase. ‘capacity to earn’!)… I was finally feeling vindicated. However, the feelings of joy ended soon because the following month. nothing. Not one dime in support.
Here is why I upgraded my review. I received a call from someone claiming to be my new case worker. She was responding to my online message. She had read it and assured me they were taking all necessary steps in getting payments for my child
1.) revoke DL
2.) Letter to employer for wage garnishment
3.) Prepping to intercept his tax return next year
4.) Letter from credit agency demanding payment
She was brief and to the point, and sounded sober so two thumbs up for that and she even apologized for the lack of support I received from my previous case worker (the old, mean, hallucinogenic hag of a raging alcoholic case worker who would call me AFTER 5pm, drunk) and assured me that she will be monitoring my case closely and if I don’ see payments within a couple of weeks, to get back in touch with her and get an update.
Thank you, to my new case worker, for actually giving a crap! Although I can barely understand what you are saying due to a language barrier, it’s better than nothing at all! It might be fleeting, cause you’re new, but I applaud the tenacity however long it lasts!

I feel like nothing gets done here. Case opened in 2003 and Ive maybe received $ 2000 tops in support (all in about 18 months) and DCSS has done NOTHING to get my payments. I finally asked how to get this loser thrown in jail and they said its a loooooong process. IDGAF… do it! Still waiting.
I understand that really, its my fault I had a baby with such a loser and why should any one else be responsible to collect child support for me, but, well… this is an agency. They chose to be in business to HELP parents like me. So its their job, they offer the service.
They charge $ 25 a year to keep your case open. I wouldn’t mind that so much if I was actually being helped.

1^st! This place blows!
2^nd! So do the rude, lazy ass people who work here!
Thanks for reading :)

I had a bad picker at 19. Seriously, had I Unilocaled my own decision making abilities at the time, the one default star would be generous. That said, I married a slug. He hardly worked during our marriage that produced 3 kids, and I am not surprised that he isn’t working regularly now.
Last month, I got $ 80… Woo hoo! I was hoping it would be consistent enough to float a few Christmas presents for the kids, alas, no. I made one small grocery shopping trip and that was it.
They’re polite but aloof in email. It seems they’re defensive and/​or evasive. I can only assume their lack of tenacity in collecting and allowing a $ 400/​month payment (for three kids TOTAL) to snowball to $ 27k since 2008 is because I am not on assistance of any kind. Maybe if I were, the government would be more aggressive in paying itself back. It’s disheartening.
The poor choice in who to procreate with is allllllll mine. I own it. I’m really just glad I am not waiting on any $. The kids may have starved by then. Thank God I can do it on my own. I feel really bad for the custodial parents who cannot.

This is by far the WORST agency I have ever come across. First, my husbands ex called them and told them my husband owed her over $ 3000 in support. They had their «attorney» contact ours saying that my husband needed to pay it back… I had proof of ALL payments and showed it to them but they STILL ended up taking about $ 1200 from our taxes and gave it to her. They also, do not give you to your case worker… you have to leave a message (with a person not a machine) and then they don’t even call you back until like three days later! lol If I could have given no stars I would have. I could write a book on how terrible this agency and their attorney is but I think you all get the point. They need to get some tips from San Joaquin county (any other county)!

3 years ago I opened a case with this department to try to establish my paternal rights for a newborn child that an ex-​girlfriend was claiming I was the father of. After two court meetings, my case was dismissed because someone had already signed the declaration of paternity. Recently I found out from my ex that I was not the father and that the declaration of paternity had been signed by the biological father when the child was born. I wasted time, suffered through a serious depression, and lost over $ 3000 to retain an incompetent attorney because these morons at DCSS (and the attorney) had no idea that the DoP had been signed when the child was born, and because of this, should have known that my case should have never gone to court! I plan on filing a complaint with this department and report the attorney to the bar.

These people are idiots. First they went against a custody order and set support because she started crying. She was lying I had a stack of proof! Two months later I got even more custody through the other county because I proved her lies, but Santa Clara wouldn’t let me modify it! Then after all these years it ends and I have proof and I get phone calls asking where there money is because they didn’t get a full payment last month and she wants to know why it didn’t come from my regular job? When I call nobody can tell me why I was called and they apparently didn’t take down my correct number. In all the years I’ve never received a call asking why my payment amount changed.
All couples going through this process should be required to get paternity test no matter what. I bet the courts and jails won’t be full of what they call «deadbeats».
As it stands now if you don’t contest custody in California you are responsible. Then she rubs it in our face for years to come, because her real Daddy can’t pay, but she can make you! You get screwed for your best earning year and if you get hurt or sick or laid off. Good bye and hello jail. She can lie about her income for years, but they don’t care. You can be married to the same spouse for 15 years, but they don’t care. You can have a another kid, but you have to work 3 jobs and not have a family because you ex makes $ 70 000 a year, lied to the courts about it and then withheld the kids on purpose to make it look like you have no custody. Your emails and police reports don’t matter!

I’m sure all of you are laughing because I am Unilocaling the damn child support dept. but dude, they suck. I’m not sure what they do all day but it certainly isn’t working on peoples files. Sure, maybe you have your baby daddy in your life and are financially stable. Well don’t take your sweet precious time on peoples files that aren’t.
FYI #1. They have no way of knowing the paying parent has started a new job until that parent informs them. Why not? Shouldn’t there be some system where if their SS# comes up as being employed, it would notify them. With technology the way it is now, i think we should have something like that.
FYI #2. They have no sense of urgency on files. I have been without a regular child support payment since November 2006 when he lost his job. He told me that in the end of April 2007 he started a new job. May 9^th I get $ from child support. Thinking yay! Checks comin in from the new employer! A month goes by, no check. Call good olé CSS and ask, wheres my money? Oh, well, we have no record of employment. Well, then were did they last money come from? Oh, that was from his unemployment checks. Oh. Ok. So i take it upon myself, so use what ever info he told me about his job, and search his butt down. Called every company i could and finally found him. Then i called CSS and gave them the info so that they could submit the garnishment. This was end of June. July comes and goes. Nothing. Aug 15 I email them because u never talk to anyone and they never call back when you leave a message, and ask them what the hold up is. Per their doc on their website the employer has 10 days to start the garnishment. They snail mail me a letter saying that they submitted the garnishment on Aug 14. AUGUST 14!!! What the hell did you do with the effing information I gave you back in JUNE??? I was heated at this moment and called and left a VM and told them that i wanted to know what took them so long to submit it. That’s BS. And can you guess that i never received a call back? interesting…
FYI #3. Don’t leave a message for them. Just email them because they wont return calls.
Ok so now that is off my chest… have a splendid day!
** side note. ⁹⁄₂₉ i got my first check! whoohoo! get it get it! **