Munoz v. Martinez
Filed
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF
THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT
(San Joaquin)
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YAMINA MUNOZ, Respondent, v. HECTOR Q. MARTINEZ, Appellant; SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES, Respondent. | C050971 (Super. Ct. No. 321036) |
Hector Q. Martinez appeals from the trial court's order denying his motion to vacate a December 2001 order that established paternity and required him to pay child support. Martinez became aware of the support order in March 2002, at the latest, but he did not file the instant action to set aside the order until March 2005. Based on time limits established in the Code of Civil Procedure and the Family Code, the trial court denied Martinez's motion. We shall affirm the judgment (order).
BACKGROUND
In August 2001, Yamina Munoz filed a petition to establish that Martinez is the father of her two children.[1] A proof of service shows Martinez was served with the complaint at an address on
In November 2001, before Martinez had filed any response to the petition, Munoz filed a notice of motion and motion for custody of the children and child support. The proof of service for the notice of motion indicated defendant was served by mail at a different address on
The following month, in December 2001, the court entered an order after a hearing on the motion--at which Martinez did not appear--granting sole physical and legal custody of the children to Munoz, granting Martinez visitation, and ordering him to pay child support of $1,151 per month (the December 2001 order).[2]
In March 2002, Martinez was personally served with a copy of the December 2001 order, and began making payments to the San Joaquin County Department of Child Support Services (the Department).
After it received several partial payments, the Department initiated contempt proceedings against Martinez; Martinez entered a plea in those proceedings, but sentencing was stayed and he filed a motion to modify the support amount. In March 2004, Martinez's motion was dropped from the court's calendar, the contempt sentence was permanently stayed and his monthly child support obligation was reduced to $368.[3]
In March 2005, Martinez filed the instant motion to set aside the December 2001 child support order. He argued that, although he â€
