What is paternity establishment?
Establishing paternity is the process for determining a child’s legal father. If parents are not married to each other when their child is born, the child does not have a legal father. Unless the father becomes a legal father, the child may miss out on many of the advantages that kids of married couples take for granted. The child may not receive the benefits that come with having two legal parents–like social security and inheritance rights. Unless paternity is established, the father’s name will not appear on the child’s birth certificate. Why does the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services establish paternity? Fatherhood must be legally recognized to obtain a child support order. By law, if a family is receiving public assistance benefits and the parents are not married, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) must establish legal paternity. Child support can only be collected from or for a legal father. How Do I Make Sure My Child Has a Legal Father? Mar
When an unmarried mother gives birth, the biological father of the child does not automatically have any of the legal rights or duties that go along with fatherhood. The law allows the mother, child, father or State of Utah to legally establish that a man is the father of a child. When this occurs, the child’s paternity has been established. Paternity establishment gives unmarried parents all of the same rights and duties that married parents have when a child is born.
Paternity establishment is the legal establishment of fatherhood for a child. A child support order cannot be established for a child born to unmarried parents until the alleged father is determined to be the father. This determination may be made through an acknowledgment of paternity by the father or by involvement of a court. Genetic testing of the child, mother and alleged father may be used to determine paternity. Paternity establishment provides emotional, social and economic ties between a father and his child.
Every child has a biological father, but if the parents are not married, the law does not recognize the biological father as the child’s legal father, and does not give him any rights or responsibilities to the child. To be the legal father, the parents have to establish paternity for the child. Why is it important to establish paternity? By establishing paternity for the child, the parents are ensuring that the child has the same rights and benefits as children born to married parents. How does the child benefit from paternity establishment? There are many emotional and financial benefits the child receives from paternity establishment including: • Knowing that the parents cared enough to acknowledge legal paternity. • Having their father’s name on their birth certificate. • Being covered by medical or life insurance from either parent, if available. • Receiving financial support from both parents, including: • Social security, • Veterans benefits, • Inheritance rights, and • Child su
