Did I do the right thing? I am the unwed father of a 2 yr old.

[CA Unwed Father]

I am the unwed father of a 2 yr old. My ex married when our son was 3 mos old; has had a daughter since and is now pregnant again. She always blocked me from declaring paternity; she allowed me limited visitation and I have paid her $400/mo since my son was born. I finally had enough of her sporatic visitation allowance and sued. Today was the court date - they increased my support to $725/mo (my net is $2,900/mo) and have assessed arrears from the time I filed the suit. Her atty said they did not want to increase my visitation because I may flee with my son - although my ex had previously agreed to this. I have NEVER done anything to give any indication, thought, inkling - she wants me to pay for her atty. I do not have an atty and have done everything on my own. I am devastated - I thought I was doing the right thing by legally establishing myself as the father of my son - now I am hit with arrearages making me look like a deadbeat and less time with my son and she is walking away saying well you wanted to be his dad legally. Should I get myself further into debt and get an atty - they are scheduling us for mediation to resolve visitation and that support could be modified based upon the results. They will make a decision about the atty fees in 6 wks - do I have any recourse?

[tbyte]

Yes, you did the right thing.
Yes, they screwed you. And so did the court. Shameful.
Yes, you need to consult with an attorney immediately, because you don't know what you are doing and her attorney is playing games with you.

Yikes!! I agree!