(A) A biological father of a child has a duty to pay the mother of the child the following financial obligations beginning with the date of conception:

(1) child support payment obligations in an amount determined pursuant to § 63-17-470;

Terms Used In South Carolina Code 63-17-325

  • Child: means a person under the age of eighteen. See South Carolina Code 63-1-40
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. Source: OCC
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Parent: means biological parent, adoptive parents, step-parent, or person with legal custody. See South Carolina Code 63-1-40

(2) fifty percent of the mother’s pregnancy expenses.

(a) Any portion of a mother’s pregnancy expenses paid by the mother or the biological father reduces that parent‘s fifty percent obligation regardless of when the mother or biological father pays the pregnancy expenses.

(b) Pregnancy expenses must include fifty percent of the mother’s insurance premiums that are not paid by her employer or governmental program beginning from the date of conception and before the pregnancy ends, unless otherwise ordered by the court.

(c) Item (2) does not apply if a court apportions pregnancy expenses as part of an award of child support in item (1).

(B) In the case of a mother who becomes pregnant as a result of rape or incest, the biological father, in addition to the duties imposed by subsection (A), also is responsible for the full cost of any expenses incurred by the mother for mental health counseling arising out of the rape or incest.

(C) The duties imposed by this section accrue at the time of conception and must be applied retroactively when paternity is contested, and medical evidence establishes the paternity of the child. Interest accrues on any retroactive obligations beginning with conception until either the obligations are brought current or paid in full whichever happens first. The rate of interest must be calculated based on the applicable interest rate for money decrees and judgments in this State established annually by the South Carolina Supreme Court.