Paternity In California

Many fathers believe that if they are not married to their child's mother, they have no legal rights as a parent. However, this is not true.

For an unmarried father, paternity must be established either through DNA testing or via a Paternity Affidavit before he is legally recognized as the father.

Once paternity is confirmed, the father can pursue custody rights through a Parenting Plan or Visitation Schedule, just as if the couple were married.

Paternity simply refers to the state of being a father. In California, this term is often used interchangeably with "parental relationship" and "parentage." Paternity can be established in various ways by either the courts or the parents.

The simplest method to establish paternity is through a voluntary process.

If the parents are unmarried at the time of the child's birth, both the mother and father can sign a form known as the Voluntary Declaration of Paternity. This form acknowledges that they are the child's legal parents, allowing the father's name to be added to the child's birth certificate.

Paternity can also be established through the court system.

In California, the child's mother, a man who believes he is the father, an adoption agency, or an organization providing support for the mother can all request a court ruling on paternity.

Basically, if a man acts like a father, even if he is not the biological parent, he may still be recognized as such in a legal sense.

• Paternity can be presumed by the existence of a Paternity Affidavit, often presented to the father at the hospital at the time of the child’s birth.
• Unless proven otherwise, when a child is born during a marriage, the mother’s husband is assumed to be the biological father.
• If a man lives with the mother and child as a family, and he has shown a dedication and connection to the child, he may also be presumed to be the father.

What if you're married and find out you are not the father?

In California, either party may rescind a declaration of paternity within the first 60 days. If there is a question of paternity, a DNA test can determine whether a man is, in fact, the father.

This, however, comes with a statute of limitations. In this state, you have two years to file a motion for genetic tests after paternity has been pronounced.

In some circumstances, even if a man undergoes these tests and it is determined he is not the biological father, the court may decide it is in the child’s best interest to deny this declaration.

In making a decision like this, the judge will take a number of factors into account, including:

• The age of the child in question,
• The length of the relationship,
• How long has it been since the declaration was signed?

It’s because of this that many men often continue to support children they know for a fact are not genetically theirs.

In instances where a man's been acting as the father for a long time, even if he is not necessarily the genetic parent, he can still retain parental rights.

If you’ve been a child’s father since day one, DNA results don’t magically change the bond you share.