Paternity Issues In TX
Lawyers For Paternity In Texas
During child support and child custody proceedings, one issue that sometimes emerges is paternity. This is often the case when paternity is in doubt because of the existence of multiple partners. This can get really complex as everyone seeks to determine who owes who what.
An experienced child custody lawyer can help you establish paternity so that you can secure certain rights and obligations.
Why Establish Paternity?
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A mother may want to establish paternity if the father of her child has failed to voluntarily provide child support for that child. A father may also want to establish paternity if they suspect that a child might be theirs. The father’s main reason for this is to obtain access and possession of the child.
What Is The Impact Of Paternity?
Texas Paternity Laws
A mother may actually seek to establish paternity right after the child is born or when they are bringing up the child. Establishing a child’s paternity determines whether the child becomes eligible for benefits like child support and health insurance. It may also lead to the child’s father getting some rights and obligations over the child.
The following are ways to establish paternity:
- Acknowledgement: The father and mother sign an Acknowledgement of Paternity form at the hospital after the child is born, or through the Texas Bureau of Vital Statistics. It’s almost impossible to revoke an acknowledgement once both parents have signed.
- Presumption: A man can be presumed to be the father if the child is born when he and the mother are married, or the child is born 300 days after the divorce. This may also happen if the man marries the mother after the child is born and voluntarily claims paternity publicly, or lives with the child for the first two years of the child and tells others that that is his child.
- Genetic testing: A mother may request genetic testing if the person she claims is the father denies that he is the father. A father may also request genetic testing if he believes that the child is not his. Even children can request genetic testing. When a proceeding is initiated by a mother or a child and the father fails to appear, the court may enter a default judgement. The father may then appear and challenge the default judgement by requesting genetic testing.
Complications With Acknowledgement Of Paternity
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Your acknowledgement of paternity documents may be considered void if they state that:
- There is another presumed father of the child and that presumed father has not denied paternity or that presumed father is considered as the presumed father according to data from the bureau of statistics
- Another person has acknowledged the paternity of the child
- There is no presumed, adjudicated, acknowledged father of the child when another acknowledged, presumed, or adjudicated father of the child exists. This means that the information in the acknowledgement of paternity documents will be considered false.
How A Paternity Affects Custody Or Visitation
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Once paternity has been established, the father of the child may be named as a joint managing conservator of the child. This simply means that the father needs to participate actively in the raising of the child with the mother. The father also has to pay child support and develop a relationship with the child. An Austin paternity lawyer can better inform you about all the details.