"Paternity" refers to the
legal determination of who is the father of the child. Fatherhood is
very rewarding and joyful, but it also carries many responsibilities. A
father is responsible for being emotionally involved with the child; to
help make decisions about the child's life, education and health; and to
financially support the child. When a child is born in a marriage, it
is presumed that the husband is the legal father. It is also presumed
that an ex-husband is the father is a child for a certain period of time
after a divorce is final. But these presumptions are arguable and
evidence can be shown to disprove paternity. In some case, it is unclear
who the father is.
A man who does not
believe he is the child's father, may want to deny paternity. On the
other hand, the mother of a child may want to establish a person's
paternity so as to require that the person is accountable for the
responsibilities of fatherhood. There are times when a mother refuses to
allow a man to participate in the child's life and denies him the joy
and responsibilities of fatherhood. In such cases, the father may want
to assert his rights by establishing paternity.
Furthermore, when
unmarried persons have children, the rights of the father may need to be
resolved through a paternity action. It is not uncommon for unmarried
persons to have children in today's society. When a child is conceived
out of wedlock, even though there may no longer be a social stigma
associated with such an event, there can be problems involvingthe
parents. They may not always agree on how the child should be raised.
They may also argue over custody, visitation, andchild support.
At Longwell & Gentle,
we have the experience in helping people with paternity matters and
helping with child support, child custody and visitation rights. If you
are in need of representation in a paternity action, please call our
office to set up a consultation.
Longwell & Gentle
serves all of Central Florida, including Orange,
Osceola, Seminole, Brevard, Volusia, and Lake
counties. We offer a free consultation
that allows you to meet personally with one of our family lawyersto
confidentially discuss your case. Spanish speaking family law attorneys
and staff are available to further assist our clients. Our firm has reasonable fees and flexible payment plans. Longwell & Gentle works hard to
achieve the best possible outcome for our clients.
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