Father’s Right’s Attorney in Huntington Beach CA
Discover how a father’s rights attorney in Huntington Beach CA can protect your rights
For many years, the mother of a child was considered the best person to raise the child. While a man and a wife raising a child together was the preferred option, if only one was raising the child then the courts almost always assigned custody to mothers. This is no longer true. Today, the courts are bound by law to grant custody based on who is best fit for the parent. Read on to learn more about this and other issues from a father’s rights attorney in Huntington Beach CA.
How to establish paternity without a father’s rights attorney in Huntington Beach CA
There are a few situations in which the law assumes who the father of a child is. The first is if a man and wife are married and a baby is born. It’s also true that paternity will be assumed by the state if a child is born to a male and female couple who has been living together as though a family, as long as the father shows he’s committed to the child. If neither of these situations are relevant then additional steps must be taken to establish paternity.
There is another very simple way to establish paternity without working with a father’s rights attorney in Huntington Beach CA: Sign a Voluntary Declaration of Paternity. This is provided to both parents in the hospital and the father has 60 days after signing to request a paternity test. If the doesn’t, then eh is considered the father of the child and his name is legally on the birth certificate. That father now has the rights and responsibilities that come with having a child.
How to establish paternity with a father’s rights attorney in Huntington Beach CA
If neither of the above situations are relevant, then paternity must be handled through the court. California state law allows any of the following to ask for a paternity order:
- The mother of the child
- A man who believes he’s the father
- A man who’s been identified as a possible father
- An adoption agency
- A child support agency providing services to the mother
If the child whose paternity is in question is not yet 12 years old then are not considered a party in the case, but they are if they’re 12 or older. Either way, a court representative referred to as a “guardian ad litem,” will be appointed to represent the best interests of the child. The judge can require genetic testing of the potential father(s) and if they refuse the tests, then the judge can consider that evidence that they’re the father.
Not having custody doesn’t mean a parent isn’t responsible for the child
If you want custody of your child then we recommend you contact a father’s rights attorney in Huntington Beach CA right away. If you have custody but you’re not getting child support from the mother, then it’s time to call an attorney. If you’ve been accused of being a father but you’re not sure that you are, then it’s time to contact an attorney.
At Law Office of Michael L. Fell, we are here to stand up for fathers. We recognize that your rights as a parent are, or should be, identical to those of the mother. If you have a reason to doubt that this is true then we encourage you to contact Law Office of Michael L. Fell at (949) 585-9055 for a free legal consultation.
