No. A Georgia stepparent has no legal duty to support a stepchild, and a stepparent’s income cannot be used to calculate the other parent’s support.
The Duty Belongs to Parents
The child support guidelines define a “parent” as “a person who owes a child a duty of support pursuant to Code Section 19-7-2,” OCGA 19-6-15(a)(16), and that section reaches only “each parent.”
In Blumenshine v. Hall, 329 Ga. App. 449 (2014), the trial court added half of the father’s new wife’s Air Force salary to his income when calculating support. The Court of Appeals reversed: “Blumenshine’s new wife had no legal obligation to contribute, directly or indirectly, to the support of Blumenshine’s children from his prior marriage.”
How a Stepparent Takes On the Duty
Adoption is the usual route. Marrying the parent creates no legal relationship with the child; a final stepparent adoption does, with the same duty as any parent. Both have their own posts.
Agreement is another. In Foltz v. Foltz, 238 Ga. 193 (1977), a husband’s divorce settlement, incorporated into the decree, required him to pay $200 a month in support covering his wife’s child from an earlier marriage. The Georgia Supreme Court upheld his contempt: “While appellant has no statutory duty to support appellee’s child, he agreed to do so.”
Conduct Alone Is Rarely Enough
In Wright v. Newman, 266 Ga. 519 (1996), a man who knew he was not the father put his name on the birth certificate and held himself out as the father for ten years while the mother never pursued the natural father. He was held liable under promissory estoppel.
By contrast, in Dial v. Dial, 279 Ga. 767 (2005), a husband let his wife bring a child into their home and helped support the child. The Court reversed a support order against him: “providing support for a child in such a voluntary manner does not, by itself, create a legal obligation to provide that support.”
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This post is a quick overview of the law and is not intended as legal advice. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation if you have questions about this or any other legal aspects regarding your case!