You and your child’s mother have a good relationship – but you’re not married. Even if you’ve never been a fan of government intrusion into private matters, you need to take the extra step to formally establish paternity over your child.
Establishing paternity secures your rights and responsibilities regarding your child, and that’s essential to protect both your relationship with your child and your child’s well-being. Here’s why:
Without formal paternity, you have no right to custody or visitation
When a child is born to an unmarried mother, the mother is the child’s only legal parent – and that means that she sets all the rules. Without establishing paternity, you cannot seek either physical or legal custody of your child. This means that you have no official right to:
- Shared parenting time or visitation with your child, except as granted by the mother
- Make any major decisions about your child’s life or future, including what schools they attend, what medical treatments they receive and what religion they follow
If your child is injured or sick, you don’t even have the right to consent to medical care for them at a clinic or a hospital. You also have no right to access your child’s medical or educational records. In short, if your relationship with your child’s mother ever falters, you can be cut out of your child’s life without any notice. You cannot even stop your child’s mother from relocating with your child to some far-off place without your consent.
Without a formal paternity determination, your child lacks many rights
The flip side of a paternity determination is that it also protects the rights of the child. Paternity imposes a legal obligation on you to provide your child with financial support, but it also grants your child important inheritance rights if you should die. This includes eligibility for things like Social Security survivor’s benefits and certain benefits for the children of veterans.
Establishing paternity today can prevent a lot of heartbreak and legal trouble in the future. If you’re uncertain about how to establish paternity over your child, legal assistance is available.