This action prevents the man from later saying that he is not the father. It is the same as a court order that formally establishes parentage. If you`re not sure, you should consult a trusted Torrance lawyer before signing anything. The path through court is the longest and most arduous path to establishing paternity. A paternity order may be filed in a California court by the following persons with legal authority: Parents should not sign a VDOP if there is any doubt about the identity of the genetic parents. In some cases, genetic testing may be available to help parents determine legal parentage. Contact your local child care agency for assistance by calling (866) 901-3212. In some cases, a judge can determine the paternity of a child without paternity tests. This can happen if the man who could be the father does not appear in court. The judge may consider other evidence (evidence) indicating that the man is the father, including the mother`s testimony (information she shares with the court). If a man who is not her husband impregnates a married woman, he has the right to establish paternity. He can request a paternity test, but he has only 2 years to contest his parentage.
When you sign this declaration, you waive the rights to the legal procedure for establishing paternity. Filiation is not automatically established unless the parents are married at the birth of the child. Establishing parentage can be a complicated process. This page will help you navigate the process. If, within the 60-day period following the signing of the acknowledgement, you ask the court to revoke the recognition of parentage and you attend a court hearing on the child (for example, a hearing on the maintenance, custody or care and protection of the child), you must inform the court that there is a problem with the child`s parentage. If you do not inform the court of the question of filiation, the recognition of filiation becomes just as binding (final) as a court judgment on filiation, and you cannot revoke the certificate of filiation. A legal parent will give your child rights and benefits that are not available if parentage is not established. There are many reasons why legal filiation is important for your child: if the parents are married at the birth of a child, there is usually no question of filiation. The law assumes that married persons are the legal parents of the child, so that in most cases filiation is automatically established. Establishing parentage means obtaining a court order or signing an official declaration of parentage or paternity indicating who a child`s legal parents are.
For example, if the parents of a child were not married when the mother became pregnant or when the child was born, the child will not have a legal father until filiation has been established. Even if a father can prove that he is the biological father of a child, if he has never been married to the mother, he has no legal rights or obligations for the child. For this purpose, filiation must be legally established. A paternity case is best dealt with as soon as possible after the birth of a baby. This benefits the parents and especially the child. Cases take some time, depending on individual circumstances. There are phases, such as determining paternity, and then custody and access orders are addressed and, of course, financial matters. In California, in some cases, the court may find that a child has more than 2 parents. This usually happens when it would harm the child if other parents were not legally recognized. This is a situation where a lawyer is needed to guide you through the process. Mothers trying to establish the paternity of an alleged uncooperative father would be better off consulting a lawyer. In the section on challenging parentage, there is much more information on how to request genetic testing to determine ancestry.
In California, parentage is established either by the presumption of marriage (a child born in wedlock or spouses who lived together at the time of conception and birth is legally a child of the marriage), by filing a voluntary declaration of parentage (VDOP) with the Parentage Opportunity Program (POP), or by the California family court system. Any parent or guardian of a child under the age of 18, or a person who believes they are the parent, may ask DOR to help establish parentage. We can also help create a child support order and a medical support order. DOR childcare services are free of charge. When you request our services, we will do our best to help you determine the child`s parentage and change the child`s birth certificate. The obvious reasons for establishing paternity are to obtain financial support so that both parents of a child have custody and become part of the child`s life.