does child support order always imply a custody issue?

[Tana]

I am completely new to this and I am considering applying for child support.the father of my lo and I were not married so paternity needs to be established.
This is the only thing that I know.
I am wondering if there is an immediate connection between requesting child support and fighting over custody.
I doubt he wants anything to do and he has not seen his son yet.
so will court rule on custody too?
thanks
Tana

[Simplydad]

Custody and child support are completely different issues. If paternity is established then you can request child support but the father will also be entitled to visitation and visitation order will probably need to follow.

[ocean]

If you bring up a child support case and have to do paternity, the courts will establish custody. He can ask for joint custody (for legal issues, school, medical decisions) and he can ask for a parenting plan to be set up. If you are on friendly terms, you can work any agreement out yourselves and ask the courts to sign off on it (money too). When I went for child support it read "mother will have residential custody and father will have visitation agreed to by parents". (not the best parenting plan if you do not work together but at the time the judge told me he had to write something about visitation.

[tigger]

In my state, they are completely different and in fact are handled by different judges.  The CS judge can't rule on custody and the judge who rules on custody won't establish CS (unless you've come to a consent order and he's signing off on the whole thing.  But that's just putting the court's rubber stamp on the parents' agreement, not ruling on a dispute.)

[Tana]

well this is for California

[ocean]

You will open the child support case, but he can then open up a custody case (and probably will be told he can do that). Here, it will go to a child support judge BUT if he counter sued you for custody then it would be moved to the regular side of family court and both would be dealt with on the same day.
Depends on the state/county/ and in many cases the judge's mood that day.