Now, with the mother gone and the child standing as her sole legacy, the fight for justice took a fierce turn. Armed with the law and unyielding resolve, the child reclaimed what was owed—not just for money, but for the dignity and honor denied for too long. The judgment, paid swiftly despite cries of hardship, is a testament to truth prevailing over neglect and betrayal.
I don’t have a relationship with my biological father. He left her when she got pregnant and never acknowledged that he had a child, always saying she was lying. She did prove paternity in court and got an order for child support.
At the time at least, he had a job making well over 6 figures that was handed to him by his parents as well as rental properties, so the ordered amount was pretty high. He refused to pay it at all and somehow got away with it.
My mother has died and I’m her only child. He’s never had a relationship with me, and in this matter, I wanted justice for my mother.
While I couldn’t independently sue for that back child support, I could essentially sue on behalf of her estate. I won, and he owed me almost $350,000, plus my legal fees. He cried poor, but the judgment was paid almost immediately, so either he was not, or his parents bailed him out.
I’ve seen his wife’s social media, and she’s posting about “bastards wanting a payday” and other tears. Some of my friends and family think that I shouldn’t have just used the legal system to get money that wasn’t technically mine.
AITA?
Conclusion
The Original Poster (OP) pursued a significant legal action to reclaim unpaid child support owed to their late mother, succeeding in obtaining a large judgment. This pursuit, driven by a desire for justice and compensation for past financial neglect, has created a clear conflict with the OP’s biological father and his current wife, who view the collection as an unjustified financial attack.
Given that the OP acted entirely within the established legal framework to enforce a court-ordered financial obligation meant for their mother, the core question remains: Does the moral obligation to seek financial justice supersede the social expectation to ignore past familial financial neglect, especially when the action involves the assets of the father’s current spouse?
Here’s how people reacted:
I’ll give you NTA but this is the problem with this stupid system. Women can waiver their responsibility after sex but men can’t?
It takes two to tango but only one to make the decision that will impact both lives forever and they can’t escape. That’s nonsense but I’ll still get messages from some these people on this sub (polite way of puting it) telling me that it’s his responsibility. “Should’ve wrapped up”. Say that to girl who’s gotten pregnant and wants to get an abortion. “Should’ve used protection”.
Edit: actually NAH.
You decided to keep the child, then that’s your choice with your body. But men should also be able to make that choice about their involvement.
Thanks for listening to my Ted Talk
Your 350K is supposed to cover all the anxiety you and your mom had to cope with because he wouldn’t do his share of the support.
Please us some of the money to buy yourself a medal (or a decent piece of jewelry) in honor of your mom’s sacrifices to get you this far. And wear it with pride.
So, he refused to say the child was his… it was his.
He was ordered to pay support… he refused to support.
He was warned and had options to settle out of court… still choose not to.
Your friends and family have nothing to do with this and have little to no say. A very long time out would be appropriate.
Your biological father’s wife KNEW about choose the same path he did… so, crying about doing the wrong things is partly her responsibility.
We are told at a young age to take responsibility, some people never really learn that.
It doesn’t seem like he was ever in a bad financial position and he abandoned you. Financial support is the minimum.
NTA.
The law was on your side.
You got what is rightfully yours.
The world needs more deadbeats being held accountable for their actions. So good for you!
I would be extra petty and call his wife out for slander/defamation.
I think they may need to take the Person, Woman, Man, Camera, TV Test,
NTA
He didn’t.
Its is own fault for not doing his duty as a parent and supporting the life he helped create.