Paternity Issues in Family Court
One issue that is often seen in many family courts in New York is establishing paternity. The child’s father comes into play in a number of different matters that may be heard in family court, such as child support obligations, child custody, and child visitation schedules. If a parent wants to establish paternity, they may be required to take a blood or DNA test to establish the true paternity of the child.
Paternity orders in New York State family courts are known as Orders of Filiation. This becomes useful in situations where the mother wishes to bring the person they think is the father to court in an attempt to hold them responsible for making child support payments. An Order of Filiation is usually only ordered when the person does not consent to the entry of the order. If the tests come back and say that the man is the father, the only way that he can rebut this is if he can show valid proof that would not make him the father of the child.
Though establishing paternity may seem overwhelming if you find yourself in that situation, it is a relatively simple fix. Once the legal father has been established, his name will be entered into the Putative Fathers Registry that is handled by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. The legal father now has the right to seek custody of the child, request a visitation schedule is created and may be ordered to make child support payments.
If you need assistance establishing paternity in New York State, contact an experienced family law attorney who can help.
Robert Pollack is an experienced divorce and family law attorney in Long Island, New York. Contact The Pollack Law Firm, P.C., to set up a free initial consultation.
