I will gladly help you through this mine field Sandra. Don't worry about the quoted $10,000 fee, but all up he will burn through approx $1,000 to $2,000 for the thrill of going through all of this. Not a bad investment, if it proven that he is not the Father, considering I bet he will be paying more than this in Child Support year on year. Your son can do all of this himself.
1. Order the home paternity test for alleged father and 1 child is only $295.
Home Paternity Testing in Australia: Accurate and Reliable | EasyDNA Australia
And before everyone jumps on me because its not NATA approved blah blah blah, I will get to that.
2. Does he ever get to see his child unsupervised? If yes, this will make the task easier, alot easier. If not, tell the ex he wants to pick the child up to go to the park or zoo for a an hour. Whats involved in the test is only a swab test of the inside of the mouth, of both Father, and child.
3. Post this test off (wait for results) so far you are out of pocket $295.
4. If the test comes back positive, then carry on with your current arrangement, keep paying Child Support, but I get the feeling that there aren't any court orders currently in place, so that is an avenue he can follow up on should he want greater involvement in the childs life should the mother be difficult to work with.
5. If the test comes back as you suspect negative, then you can, move forward. Stop paying Child Support immediately. Upload the results of the DNA test to C.S. via the mygov website or email them, with a short note that you have reason to believe you are not the Father and are in the process of taking it further.
6. Write an email to the ex, be polite, but stern, throughout the whole email (you need this for record keeping), you politely ask her that you have some doubts over being the Father and would like to go have it resolved; 1. carry out a DNA Paternity Test (NATA Approved), all 3 of you get swabbed in a medical environment (cost $800). (do not advise her that you already have the answer). 2. You will be ceasing further Child Support payments until the testing is carried out. 3. Also you will be seeking reimbursement of all Child Support Paid until now. 4. You will be filing an action against her for fraud, financial hardship, emotional stress and well being... put it all in the email, give her a week to respond. You really want this to hit home with her that you are no longer playing her game and are willing to take it further, also offer up a carrot, that should she carry out the test and its found negative, then you are willing to drop the fraud charges etc etc.
7. Should there be no response, have the same letter re-written by your local solicitor, using all the fancy jargon (cost $330)
8. Stay polite and be of good behaviour throughout all of this, and try to limit contact to just email form, I cannot stress this enough.
9. Should you still get no response, then you will need to file an "initiating application (family law)"
Initiating Application (form) - Federal Circuit Court of Australia
This will cost you $330 to file it with the court as final orders, get ready to play the waiting game, approx 3 to 6 months.
Your final order will consist of all three parties, taking a NATA approved DNA test, and you are willing to pay for it yourself. Your affidavit will also contain you previous copy of the easydna results, which is why you would like to have the NATA test done.
10. Prior to filing your court paperwork with the commsportal, make an appointment with a family law lawyer in your town, go over the paperwork with them, just to see if things need to be reworded, or added in. Cost $110 to $440, for that 1 to 2 hours.
11. File your paperwork (upload it via the commsportal) wait for your court date, and the documents to be red stamped and returned to you, print them out and serve them on the Ex (serving of documents $150).
12. Wait for court date to come around. Then self represent. All of your paperwork does the talking anyway, you will be infront of the judge for no more that 5 minutes. (thanks for the 3 to 6 months waiting period federal circuit court)
So all up it's cost you approx $295 or upto $1,800
Take a read of this as well;
https://www.legalaid.vic.gov.au/sit...ource-child-support-and-parentage-testing.pdf
Cheers