It may be one of the oldest and strongest presumptions in the Law, but it seems to be time for the Courts to wake up to the reality of modern living and the complicated interpersonal relationships we weave. There were, no doubt, good social reasons why, in the past, the Courts were protective of the apparent “legitimacy” of children. Being known as, and being called, a bastard had a much more devastating impact on a child than it would today. Now it is more of a general insult rather than a direct expression of a person’s parentage. However, it is becoming less and less accurate that all children born within the dates of a marriage, even while the spouses reside together, are the children of the husband. As more and more children are born to unmarried mothers, and to families whose living arrangements are more fluid than remaining living with the father of the children, it is becoming increasingly more important to acknowledge the biological ties than to turn a blind eye in favor of a legal fiction.

There are several groups of people, other than parents who have an abiding interest and concern for children that have sought custodial time with the children. These include Grandparents, Step-parents, Aunts, Uncles, and siblings. The Pennsylvania Courts have acknowledged the rights of persons who have acted in loco parentis, or who have acted in place of a parent, as many step-parents have, the right to have contact, even primary physical custody of the child or children, whether or not they are related by blood or marriage to the children. However, although the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has stated that there is no presumption of a preference for the parents of the child, as there can be no presumptions in custody cases since the standard is always what is in the “best interests” of the child, third parties have an increased burden when opposed to actual biological parents. The rights of step-parents have been recognized in Pennsylvania since 1977.

There are several mechanisms for parents who have custody of their children to obtain some child support in Pennsylvania when the other parent is not voluntarily providing it. The most obvious is, of course, to file at the local Domestic Relations Office (DRO). If there is a Protection From Abuse petition filed, a request for an Order for temporary support can be presented, as well, in that action, but there is a requirement to file at DRO within ten (10) days of the entrance of the temporary order. The temporary amount will continue until DRO determines the appropriate amount. DRO is required to apply the Supreme Court’s guideline figures if the parents are unable to arrive at a figure they can both agree is appropriate. Those guidelines, required by Federal Law, are reviewed and changed every four (4) years and, on May 12, 2010, new guidelines were implemented. There have some important changes in the guidelines including the changing of the amounts of support required based on incomes. Essentially, the guidelines are a chart that puts the combination of both parents’ net incomes on the left side of the chart and the various amounts of money (Basic Support Obligation - BSO) deemed necessary to be contributed by both parents based on the number of children as columns beside the income ranges. Then the non-custodial parent’s obligation is a result of multiplying the amount for support on the chart indicated for the number of children and the joint net incomes by the percentage the non-custodial parent’s income is of the total joint net income.