Your Paternity Lawyers in Temecula, CA
You never got married, but you had a baby. That child is the most important thing in the world to you. You want to make sure your child is protected.
Maybe you and the other parent got along great for years, and now you just cannot work it out among yourselves any more. Maybe the two of you lived together and you just broke up. All of the sudden, you can no longer visit with your own child!
Maybe you are worried that if you let the other parent visit without a court order, he or she won’t give the baby back. How can you keep your children out of the middle?
Children are expensive to raise. How are you both supposed to afford to support the children. What if you need daycare-who pays? What if you don’t like the other parent’s babysitter-can you object? Parents worry about their children.
Problems need to be solved. You are no longer together, but you still share a child. You need help learning how to cooperate for the sake of your child’s future.
What is a paternity lawsuit?
In order to begin a paternity suit, one of the parents must file a paternity action. There will then be a court hearing, where orders will be made regarding the child. You need one of the best paternity lawyers to make sure you are not on the losing end of this battle over your child.
Paternity actions in Court
In posthumous actions, the alleged father must have done something affirmative to acknowledge the child prior to death (for example, putting his name on the child's birth certificate or identifying himself as the father in another legal or formal action).
Only the following individuals or parties have legal standing to bring a paternity action:
- the infant's mother
- the mother of a soon-to-be-born child
- a man who claims to be the biological father of a child
- a man claiming to be the biological father of an unborn child
- the youngster
- a child's personal representative
- a child's mother and father (a voluntary action filed together)
- the mother and father of a soon-to-be-born child (a voluntary action filed together)
- a state agency that intervenes in cases of child neglect or need
- a prosecutor's office that intervenes in cases of child neglect or dependency
The party who files the action will be responsible for providing supporting documents, paying the filing fee with the court, and serving the responding party with a summons and a copy of the complaint, just like in any other civil suit. Other necessary parties are usually required to be notified. For example, if the action is brought by a child’s guardian or a social services office, the mother or anyone with legal custody of the child must be served alongside the alleged father.
Because a paternity action has been filed, a court will not automatically order paternity tests. It will examine the petition to see if there is enough information in it to warrant or justify the imposition of such a test. If a paternity test is ordered by the court, the mother, child, and alleged father will all be tested at a court-designated facility. If the man did not file the paternity action and the results of the tests show that he is not the father, the cost of the testing will be charged to the party who filed the paternity action.
A court’s determination of paternity is final, and a copy of the court’s order is required to establish the child’s present and future rights.
The California Statutory Scheme: The Basic Procedure in California:
What is a "Paternity or Parentage" action? A "paternity" case is one brought under the Uniform Parentage Act. The goal of a paternity case is to determine whether or not a person is the natural parent of a child and, if parentage is established, to determine how the child will be parented and who should contribute to the child's support.
A paternity lawyer can help you with your case. Get in touch today to discuss your options.
