Paternity Attorneys Jacksonville

How to determine each parent’s rights, responsibilities, and obligations when the parents are not married?

How to establish or disestablish paternity?
Why is it important to establish or disestablish paternity?

The establishment or disestablishment of Paternity becomes very important to many parents when a child is born out of wedlock. One, or both parents, or the child may be seeking legal guidance to determine each party’s rights, responsibilities, and obligations for various reasons, including but not limited to the following:

  • Sharing parental responsibility regarding the health, welfare, and maintenance of the minor child;
  • Establishing timeshare;
  • Calculating Child support;
  • Determining the child’s right to inherit from either parents’ family;
  • Dependency issues under worker’s compensation or other compensation programs; and
  • Issues of procedure and enforceability of Gestational Surrogacy Contracts.

How To Determine Each Parent’s Rights, Responsibilities and Obligations When The Parents Are Not Married?

PARENTS: Through our many years of experience and knowledge of this complex area of the law, we will carefully answer your questions, define the issues, and recommend a legal solution. Whether your goal is to establish or disestablish legally the parentage of your child, please carefully review the following questions prior to our first consult to help you define the issues relating to your specific family matter.

MOTHERS: What are the rights of a woman who has a child out of wedlock?

  • The Mother of a child born out of wedlock is the natural Guardian of the child;
  • The Mother is entitled to the sole parental responsibility and residential care of the child.
  • There is no shared parental responsibility or timeshare under the law until the parent establishes the Paternity of the child.
  • The Mother must establish child support for the child’s financial needs.

FATHERS: What are the rights of a man who fathers a child out of wedlock?

  • The Father has no legal standing or rights to shared parental responsibility and timeshare until the paternity of the child is established.
  • Therefore, in order for the Father to extend his legal rights to participate consistently in the child’s life, he (or the Mother) must establish paternity.
  • Once paternity has been established, the Father is entitled to provide support, obtain parental responsibility, and timeshare with the child.

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Paternity Issues:

Please carefully review the following questions prior to our first consult to help you define the issues relating to your specific family matter.

  1. Without an establishment of paternity, does the alleged father have any rights in regard to the care of the minor child?
  2. How do the Florida Statutes address the issues of legal custody of a child born out of wedlock? Who has the primary residential care and custody of the child?
  3. What is the legal significance of the name placed on the birth certificate?
  4. How does a biological father establish paternity when the mother is denying the fact? When and how can blood tests be ordered to determine Paternity? What is the difference between a legal father and a biological father?
  5. Under what facts can the Florida Courts become involved with paternity when the child is born out of the state of Florida?
  6. If a husband chooses to contest the legitimacy of a child born during the intact marriage, how does he overcome the legal presumption of parentage when a child is born legitimate?
  7. Do the Florida courts recognize dual fatherships?

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If you are seeking an informed analysis of your family situation, advice regarding your legal rights, and guidance resolving these issues, please contact Treece & Treece at (904) 737-1771 or email us at treecelaw@bellsouth.net to schedule a consultation.

We serve clients in Jacksonville, Duval County, Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, St. Augustine, St. John’s County, Fernandina, Yulee, Amelia Island, Nassau County; MacClenny, Glen St. Mary, Sanderson, Taylor, Baker County, Green Cove Springs, Kingsley Lake, Clay County, Starke, and Bradford County.

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