Legal Help for Single Mothers in Indiana

Contents

Where to start

Quick reference

Custody, parenting time, paternity, and child support

Family cases may involve custody, parenting time, paternity, relocation, divorce, or changing an existing order. Ask for legal advice before filing when there is abuse, a move, a child with special needs, a parent who is not following an order, or a disagreement about who can make major decisions.

Indiana courts publish statewide court rules and guidelines, including parenting time and child support rules. Guidelines can help you understand common court standards, but they do not change an existing order by themselves. Follow the current order unless a court changes it or a lawyer tells you another rule applies.

The Indiana child support calculator estimates support using income, parenting time, health care, child care, and other details. It is a planning tool. A judge makes the final decision and may approve a different amount when the law allows it.

Indiana child support services can locate a parent, establish paternity, establish or change support and medical-support orders, and enforce payments. Custodial parents, noncustodial parents, and some relatives caring for a child can use the child support enrollment process. Enrollment is free.

For case questions, call KIDSLINE at 1-800-840-8757. Live customer service is available Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., except state holidays. The KIDSLINE contact page also links to county offices.

The Indiana child support guide explains enrollment, payment records, enforcement, and modification in plain language.

Eviction, rent disputes, and unsafe housing

If a landlord files an eviction case, read the summons and attend every hearing. Indiana courts warn that a judge may rule against a tenant who does not appear. Bring the lease, notices, payment receipts, landlord messages, repair requests, photos, and proof of any rent-help application.

The Indiana courts housing help page explains rent assistance, legal help, and pre-eviction diversion. When both the tenant and landlord agree, diversion may make the case confidential and pause it for 90 days while the parties work on rental assistance and other steps. Ask the judge or legal aid whether this option fits your case.

Indiana Legal Services provides landlord-tenant information about eviction, deposits, rent, subsidized housing, and eviction record sealing. Apply for help even if you are unsure whether the office can represent you.

For rent, shelter, and utility programs, use the Indiana housing guide and the Indiana emergency guide. Housing help and legal defense are separate paths, so work on both when a case is filed.

Domestic violence, stalking, and protection orders

Indiana allows people to request a protection order through an online filing system. Trained advocates can help prepare and submit the petition. A protection order can address certain contact, threats, stalking, abuse, and safety concerns, but it is not a promise that harm will stop.

Before filing, think about safe contact information, child exchange, school pickup, work, shared phone plans, location sharing, and where court notices will go. An advocate can help without forcing you to enter a shelter or take a step you do not want.

If you believe a child is being abused or neglected, call the Indiana Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline at 1-800-800-5556. This number is for reports to the state, not for family-law advice or child support questions.

Benefits, debt, discrimination, and work rights

Public benefits

A SNAP, TANF, Medicaid, disability, or other benefit notice should state the action, reason, effective date, and appeal rights. Save the notice, envelope, portal message, and proof you submitted. Ask legal aid whether continued benefits, a hearing, or a faster request may be available in your case. Follow the deadline printed on the notice.

Use the Indiana SNAP guide, Indiana TANF guide, and Indiana health guide for program contacts while you seek legal help.

Debt and consumer problems

Legal help may be available for debt collection, garnishment, repossession, scams, identity theft, or unfair sales practices. The Indiana Attorney General accepts consumer complaints, but the office does not become your private lawyer. Keep contracts, bills, collection letters, payment records, and screenshots.

Discrimination

The Indiana Civil Rights Commission investigates some discrimination in housing, employment, education, public accommodations, and credit. Its complaint instructions say employment, education, public-accommodation, and credit complaints generally must be filed within 180 days. Housing complaints generally must be filed within one year. Filing is free.

Save dates, names, messages, policies, job postings, lease records, and witness information. The commission can investigate a qualifying discrimination complaint, but it does not handle every workplace or landlord disagreement.

Work and pregnancy rights

Pregnancy accommodation, pumping breaks, unpaid wages, leave, firing, and workplace discrimination may involve different state or federal offices. The workplace rights guide explains where to start and why deadlines matter.

How to get free or low-cost legal help

Indiana Legal Services

Indiana Legal Services handles non-criminal civil legal problems for eligible Indiana residents. Phone intake is available Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern, at 1-844-243-8570. The online application is available on weekdays at any time. Be ready to answer questions about income, assets, household size, and the legal problem.

Submitting an application does not mean the office accepted your case. Case type, income, funding, conflicts, urgency, and staff time can affect the result. Apply early and include every deadline.

Local clinics and pro bono programs

Pro Bono Indiana clinics offer free civil legal clinics in some locations and online. Clinic topics and dates change, so confirm whether the event covers your problem and whether registration is required.

Indiana Free Legal Answers

Indiana Free Legal Answers lets eligible adults post a non-criminal civil question for a volunteer Indiana lawyer. The lawyer answers through the website and does not go to court or take over the full case. Do not rely on this service when a deadline is very close because an answer is not promised before that date.

Court forms, filing, and fees

Use approved Indiana forms when possible. The site includes family, custody, divorce, relocation, debt, eviction, expungement, and other form packets. Read every instruction before filing and check whether your county has local rules.

Indiana Legal Help also posts common court forms for appearances, continuances, contempt, virtual hearings, and fee waivers. A fee waiver asks the judge not to charge filing costs because you cannot afford them. Approval is not automatic.

The court clerk can explain where to file, accepted payment methods, hours, and how to obtain copies. Court staff must stay neutral and cannot tell you what claim to make, whether you will win, or what facts to include.

Documents and information to gather

You do not need every item before asking for help. Start with the court papers or notice that has the nearest deadline.

The documents checklist can help you label and save copies. Do not secretly record a call or conversation without first checking whether the law allows it in your situation.

Related help while your case is pending

Legal problems can make it harder to keep work, housing, food, and child care stable. The Indiana child care guide explains subsidy and local care paths. Each program has separate rules and cannot promise legal or financial results.