What You Need to Know About Family Law
Bringing a child into the world, caring for it, raising it, and keeping it safe are the most important things that anyone can do. If you are getting a divorce or you have had a child with your unmarried partner and the two of you are splitting up, then you will need to work out the child support arrangements. Before this can be done, the paternity of the child must be established.
This is a little-known rule and process, and it may surprise you to learn that the biological father of the child must be proved before they can be held legally responsible for paying child support. Until this paternity is established, the child’s presumptive father has no rights or responsibilities to the child, including paying child support or enjoying visits.
You may have reason to invoke these legal technicalities if there is some question about the child’s paternity. You should get a family lawyer involved immediately. If you must go through the process of proving that you are the father of the child, then you want a lawyer for family disputes by your side as guide and counsel.
The Possible Complexities of Paternity
- The most straightforward cases
In the most straightforward case, a married couple who have a child together are assumed to be the parents of the child. If you had a baby with the woman you are now divorcing and you acknowledged paternity at the time of birth, then there is no issue.
However, if you are not married to the person who gave birth to your child, you do not automatically become the legal father. To establish paternity, you can acknowledge it in writing—through an affidavit—or you can claim the child at the time of birth by having your name put on the birth certificate as the father.
- Presumed father
If you had a child while you were married, you are the presumed father. Things can get complicated if your wife conceived a child while the two of you were legally separated. If you had sexual contact with your wife while you were separated, the child may or may not be yours. If you at first believe it is yours but then come into evidence that it may not be yours, you can rebut the presumption; you can file a legal request with the court to disprove paternity. Child custody lawyers for fathers know how to help men in your position work through this difficult, stressful, and painful process.
If you are not married to the mother of your child, you may still have a presumption of fatherhood if any of the following are true:
- You tried to marry the mother and had the child during this attempt
- You actually married the mother after the child was born and put your name on the birth certificate
- You welcomed the child into your home and claimed to be its father
If you are later confronted with evidence that the child is not yours, you have the right to rebut presumed paternity. The matter is time-sensitive, so you should move quickly to determine the paternity of the child. Child custody lawyers for fathers know how to help men in your position do what is right for themselves and the child they believed was their own.
- Alleged father
This is an unmarried man who the court has good reason to believe is the biological parent of the child. This is often the result of the other parent’s naming the man in a paternity suit that is meant to give them child support and custodial rights. In these cases, custody lawyers for single mothers employ a variety of tactics to prove that you are the father.
If you have been alleged to be the father of a child, the court must offer you the opportunity to participate in a DNA test before ruling on whether you owe child support. If you receive a paternity request from the court, you must comply with it. If you do not, the court may issue a default judgment, which has the legal effect of making you the biological father without a paternity test.
The law requires that both parents support their children financially. If the mother of your child received public assistance, then the state may bring suit against you to recoup the money paid out.
Same-Sex Couples
In 2015, the United States Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage throughout the nation. Though the ruling simplified marriage rules for same-sex couples, it left many questions about the children of such couples unanswered. In most states, presumed parent laws apply to same-sex couples. However, there is little law on how courts should proceed if one member of a same-sex couple contests paternity.
There are all kinds of arrangements that same-sex couples can make to have their own biological children. But there is little legal precedent of how the non-biological parent’s rights are to be protected in case of divorce or the death of the biological parent. Child custody attorneys in Ontario are the best people to consult in these matters. If you are a same-sex couple who are going through a divorce and you have children together, then you should get insight from child custody Attorneys Ontario before proceeding.
How a Paternity Case Works
If there is uncertainty about the paternity of the child, then you may need to go through a formal legal process to establish it. Such a case begins with a request from either parent to the court. If you are the acknowledged or alleged father of the child, then you will not have custodial or child visitation rights until the court has issued a ruling about paternity.
The simplest way to resolve the matter is through DNA. These tests are 99.9% accurate in determining the child’s biological father. If the test shows that you are the father, then the court will order you to pay child support and you will be granted custody and child visitation rights.
Hiring an Attorney
Our family court lawyers are experts in civil litigation matters such as divorce and property division, paternity disputes, and trust litigation. By hiring Zimmerman Law LLP, we will work tirelessly to ensure your case returns favorable results and that our clients turn out happy.
See our list of in-person and virtual contact options here.