Paternity

If you have a child with another person who is not your spouse, you have a paternity case.  Paternity cases are like divorces in several respects.  Clearly the first issue which must be resolved is establishment of paternity.  Paternity is often established by written acknowledgement of the natural father.  This is becuase the father subject to a paternity action typically does not dispute he is the natural father.  When there is a question of whether the respondent in a paternity case is the natural father, it's wise to conduct genetic testing, such as DNA testing.  DNA testing is generally accurate to 99.99% and is conducted without much invasion to the respondent's privacy.  

It is important to not acknowledge paternity if you believe you may not be the father as certain irrevocable duties will be assigned to you, such as the obligation to pay child support.  A paternity action may be brought by the child's mother, by any man who has reason to believe he is the father, or by the child when paternity has not been established. 

Aside from the mere establishment of the child's natural father, the court must determine the issues of child support, parental responsibility, timesharing (custody), and possibley attorneys fees and partition of real or personal property.

The first issue established by the court will be Parental Responsibility.  Parental responsibility is essentially decision-making for the child or children.  In the vast majority of cases courts order "Shared Parental Responbility."  That means the parties are required and expected to work together to make major decisions for the children.  Day-to-day decisions are generally the responsibility of the parent with the children at the time of the decision.  Major decisions would include issues such as medical, educational, and religious upbringing.  In a small minority of cases, the court orders "Sole Parental Responsibility," which gives one parent sole discretion to make major life decisions for the child.  This is rare and requires a court finding that shared parental resonsibility would be detrimental to the child.

The second issues estabilshed by the court will be timesharing, formerly known as "custody."  Timesharing - clearly a more neutral term - provides for when the child resides with one parent versus the other.  The court will order a detailed parenting plan, providing for many components of the care of the child, including when and how pick-up and drop-off will occur, who will do the driving, how and when communication will occur between parties and each other and parties and the children, and how the parties will make decisions regarding extra-curricular activities.

The next issue is child support.  Child support is established by the same calculation as provided for in divorce cases with minor children.  As in those cases, the law requires the court to determine the income of the parties, the timesharing of each, the childrens' health insurance expense and who pays it, and the children's employment-related child care expense and who pays it. 

Depending on the situation, the court may also have the issue of partition of property to deal with.  This would be true if the parties, although not married, owned property jointly not subject to division.  One example of such property would be a home.  The court can't cut it down the middle, so the only real remedy is partition.  That means the court would order it to be sold and the proceeds split between the parties.  The same can be done of personal property, such as a car or boat or horse.

Depending on the economic disparity between the parties, the issue of attorneys fees may be before the court.  Under essentially the same standard as in divorce cases, if one party has a greater ability to pay and ther other has the need, one party may be ordered to pay or contribute to the attorneys fees of the other.

Interested in learning about your rights in a paternity action?  Schedule a free consultation by calling (561)472-0919 or click "Paternity Consultation" and complete a consultation request form.  

For more information or representation regarding paternity, contact our office to speak with an attorney at (561) 472-0919.