Paternity
Giulitto Law Office handles paternity cases in Portage County and surrounding areas. Contact our office today to speak with an attorney about your case.
Legally establishing the father protects your child by giving them options and advantages they might otherwise miss. Establishing paternity provides your child with a security only you can give. Below are some of the reasons you may want to establish paternity.
For Your Child’s Sense of Identity-
Children find it very important to know who their mother and father are, and to have a relationship with both parents. Children who don’t know both parents often miss out on knowing both sides of their extended family, so they lose grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, as well as a parent.
To Help Set-up Custody & Visitation-
Unless a court order is issued, the mother is the sole residential parent and the legal custodian of the child. However, once paternity is established, the father can ask the court for visitation rights and/or to share in custody arrangements. This gives the opportunity for the father and child to see each other regularly and for the father to have custody of the child if something happens to the mother. It can also help take the pressure off of one parent trying to raise a child alone.
To Establish Child Support-
Both parents have the responsibility to financially support their child. If the parents choose to separate and paternity has already been established, it will be easier for the child to keep receiving the support he or she needs.
To Secure Financial Benefits-
Legal paternity allows the child to qualify for important financial benefits from the father. These benefits may include social security, life insurance, veterans’ benefits, and inheritance rights if something happens to the father.
To Provide Medical Benefits-
A legal father may be able to add his child to his health insurance policy. Also, it can be very important for a child to know the medical history of both parents.
Because Fathers Are Important In Kids’ Lives-
Children themselves tell us what an impact their dads have on their lives. In sidebars throughout this site, you can read what children had to say about their dads, and see how fathers make a positive difference in kid’s lives.
Paternity in Ohio can be established in a variety of ways. The three main ways paternity is established are as follows:
- The child is born during a marriage;
- Both parents sign a paternity affidavit acknowledging paternity;
- Through genetic testing.
It is important to establish paternity for both mothers and fathers of children born outside a marriage. For mothers it is important because paternity must be established before child support can be issued. For fathers it is important because they cannot get custodial or visitation rights until paternity is established. If a party is unwilling to establish paternity a paternity can be initiated where the court can order genetic testing.
Contact Giulitto Law Office today to schedule a FREE CONSULTATION with all your Paternity questions.