§ 571 — Enforcement of support and establishment of paternity

§ 571. Enforcement of support and establishment of paternity. 1. Any\ninconsistent provision of this law or any other law notwithstanding, in\ncases where a social services official has accepted, on behalf of the\nstate and a social services district, an assignment of support rights\nfrom a person applying for or receiving family assistance in accordance\nwith the provisions of the social services law, the social services\nofficial or an authorized representative of the state is authorized to\nbring a proceeding or proceedings in the family court pursuant to\narticle four of this act to enforce such support rights and, when\nappropriate or necessary, to establish the paternity of a child pursuant\nto article five of this act.\n 2. The official who brings such a proceeding and the attorney\nrepresenting him shall be deemed to represent the interests of all\npersons, officials and agencies having an interest in the assignment.\nThe court shall determine, in accordance with applicable provisions of\nlaw, whether such person is a necessary party to the proceeding and\nwhether independent counsel need be appointed to represent any party to\nthe assignment or any other person having an interest in the support\nright.\n 3. (a) Any support order made by the court in such a proceeding shall\ndirect that payments be made directly to the support collection unit, as\ndesignated by the appropriate social services district, so long as there\nis in effect an assignment of support rights to such district. Further,\nthe order shall provide that when the person or family no longer\nreceives public assistance, payments shall continue to be made to the\nsupport collection unit, unless the person or family requests otherwise.\nWhen the person or family is no longer receiving public assistance, the\nsocial services district shall notify the parties to the order that the\nperson or family upon request to the social services official and\nwithout further judicial intervention may receive support payments\ndirectly. If such a request is made, the person paying support shall be\nso notified and shall be informed that unless such person applies for an\norder pursuant to section four hundred forty of this act within thirty\ndays, the person or family may receive such payments directly.\n (b) The entry of an order of support under this section shall not\npreclude an assignor who is no longer receiving public assistance from\ninstituting a support proceeding and receiving a hearing de novo on the\namount of support to which the assignor is entitled at that time.\n 4. Any order for support made by the court in such a proceeding shall\nspecify the amount of support to be paid on behalf of the spouse, if\nany, and the amount to be paid on behalf of each child.\n 5. In cases where a support agreement or compromise is entered into\nbetween a social services official and the absent parent, the social\nservices official may petition the court for approval of such agreement\nor compromise in accordance with the provisions of section four hundred\ntwenty-five of this chapter, which provisions shall apply thereto.\n 6. In cases where an order for support has been made by a family court\nand upon notification to the court that an assignment of support rights\nhas thereafter been made to the social services official responsible for\nfurnishing family assistance, payments pursuant to such order shall be\nmade to such official until he or she notifies the court of the\ntermination of the assignment.\n 7. Any inconsistent provision of the law notwithstanding, the\nprovision of this section shall also apply to cases brought in\naccordance with title six-A of article three of the social services law\ninvolving persons who are not applicants for or recipients of family\nassistance.\n 8. Any other inconsistent provision of law notwithstanding, if an\napplicant for or recipient of family assistance is pregnant, and a\nproceeding to establish paternity has been filed, and the allegation of\npaternity is denied by the respondent there shall be a stay of all\npaternity proceedings until sixty days after the birth of the child.\n 9. Any order of support made pursuant to this section shall be\neffective as of the date of the application therefor, and any\nretroactive amount of support shall be paid in one sum or periodic sums\nas the court shall direct, taking into account any amount of temporary\nsupport which has been paid.\n 10. (a) When a person has applied for and is receiving public\nassistance and care and an assignment of support rights has been made or\nhas applied for and is receiving child support enforcement services\npursuant to section one hundred eleven-g of the social services law, or\nis receiving such services in another state, and such person has an\nexisting order of support which does not direct that support payments be\nmade to the support collection unit, the social services district shall,\nupon notice to the parties and without further judicial intervention,\ndirect that support payments be made directly to the appropriate support\ncollection unit.\n (b) When a child is in foster care, in this state or in another\nstate, and where there is an existing order for the support of such\nchild which does not direct that support payments be made to the support\ncollection unit, the social services district shall, upon notice to the\nparties and without further judicial intervention, direct that support\npayments be made directly to the appropriate support collection unit.\n 11. A support order of another state payable to a support collection\nunit as a result of a notice pursuant to this section or through a court\norder shall be deemed to be an order on behalf of persons receiving\nservices under title six-A of article three of the social services law\nand shall be enforceable in the same manner as such orders.\n