A lawyer to establish paternity can be hired by the biological father in order to obtain visitation with and even custody of their child. The biological mother may seek to establish paternity to receive child support and other rights their child would have from a legally established parent (such as access to medical information and death benefits). In many situations, paternity doesn’t need to be proven, especially in the case of a married couple. For unmarried couples, a document can be signed by the father after the child is born which acknowledges paternity. However, certain situations may warrant court involvement; such as when parents disagree on who the biological father is. A man that is being pressured into signing a document proving paternity that does not believe he is the biological father should seek legal help before signing anything. Once paternity is proven, it can be difficult to reverse, and makes him legally responsible to support the child throughout his or her childhood. Likewise, if a mother experiences resistance from the biological father to acknowledge his status, then she should talk with an attorney.
Establishing Paternity with Court Order
Either parent may file an action in court to determine fatherhood. If the parties do not agree on who the father is, then a DNA test is typically ordered. Known as a paternity test, results are received in as little as a few days. Once paternity has been determined, the court can move forward with ordering custody, parenting time, and child support. In this situation, hiring a paternity attorney should be considered before court proceedings begin.
Disestablishing or Changing Paternity
Even if she is now divorced; if the mother was married at the beginning of the pregnancy (up to 300 days before the baby is born), the former husband is presumed to be the father. So, whether the father was established through marriage or via a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity form, the recorded father must first be disestablished in order to establish the biological father. To do this, original court documentation stating that the established father is not the biological father must be submitted to the Oregon Center for Health Statistics. Your family law attorney can help you obtain this court-certified judgment. A common way to demonstrate this in the case where paternity is established through marriage is through the divorce judgment; with a statement that there is “no child of the marriage”. Once there is no longer a father on record, the biological father can establish paternity.