Paternity Matter Law
Establishing legal paternity allows for far more benefits than receiving the child support checks on a monthly basis. You need to consider the fact that every child has the right to know who their father is and to be known by their father.
Attorneys at SBEMP (Slovak, Baron, Empey, Murphy & Pinkney) law firm provides professional legal advice and services to clients in Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, Inland Empire, Orange County, Coachella Valley, Costa Mesa, San Diego, New Jersey, New York, and surrounding communities.
Your child is benefited by legal gains when you establish paternity. This includes:
- The right to death benefits: In addition to gaining regular child support, your child has the right to financially benefit from the birth father. This includes death benefits, such as Veteran’s benefit and Social Security benefits. It also includes a share of possible inheritance. Not establishing paternity can result in the loss of these financial benefits.
- Access to medical history of birth father: Your child can gain access to their birth father’s medical history by establishing paternity. They can be informed of genetic medical issues that could get passed on to the next generation.
Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity by Birth Father
The first step when trying to formally establish paternity is to ask the child’s birth father to voluntarily acknowledge paternity. By voluntarily agreeing to paternity, the birth father agrees to be responsible for the child and pay child support until a time the child enters adulthood.
Birth father can voluntarily establish paternity in the following ways:
- He can sign a Declaration of Paternity by being present during child birth. This document is also called Acknowledgment of Paternity. Declaration of Paternity is used when you want the father’s name to be placed on the birth certificate of the child.
- The birth father can always sign an affidavit of paternity if he is not present during child birth. This document can be signed until the child reaches the age of 18. You may need to get the birth certificate altered at a later date if you want the father’s name added to the birth certificate.
Establishing Paternity When Birth Father Does Not Voluntarily Acknowledge
You need to contact the Office of Child Support Enforcement in your area if the alleged birth father of your child refuses to voluntarily establish paternity by acknowledging the child as his own. These cases are called IV-D cases.
The process for establishing paternity in such cases is as follows:
- All parties, including the mother, child, and alleged father are requested to submit to a genetic testing. The alleged father may be identified to be the child’s birth father by default in case he refuses to submit to genetic testing.
- Paternity results are provided to the alleged father along with any other information.
- If the test results come back as a positive match between the alleged father and child, the results shall come to be recognized as a conclusive determination for establishing paternity after 60 days. However, it is important that the father does not contest the genetic testing results.
Lawyers at the SBEMP law firm serve clients from Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, Inland Empire, Orange County, Coachella Valley, Costa Mesa, San Diego, New Jersey, New York, and nearby locations for a range of legal practice areas.
Have any legal questions? Contact SBEMP Law Firm:
For more information or to request a consultation please contact the law offices of SBEMP (Slovak, Baron, Empey, Murphy & Pinkney) by clicking here.
SBEMP LLP is a full service law firm with attorney offices in Palm Springs (Palm Desert, Inland Empire, Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells), CA; Indian Wells, CA; Costa Mesa (Orange County), CA; San Diego, CA; New Jersey, NJ; and New York, NY.
DISCLAIMER: This blog post does not constitute legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is formed by reading it. This blog post may be considered ATTORNEY ADVERTISING in some states. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Additional facts or future developments may affect subjects contained within this blog post. Before acting or relying upon any information within this newsletter, seek the advice of an attorney.
