Staten Island Paternity Lawyer
If you happen to live in the Staten Island area and require the assistance of a law firm that can help you out, getting in touch with us is a great step in the right direction. We are a divorce, fathers rights, child custody and paternity law firm that has operated for 50 years. The fact that we handle great business brings people out to us time and time again any time that they need assistance with family law court related situations.
First things first, you will need to get the assistance of a legally binding paternity test so that you can move forward with information pertaining to being a part of your child’s life.
DNA Testing to Determine Paternity
The DNA testing a man submits to for the purpose of demonstrating or denouncing paternity of a child has to meet certain criteria. To be considered as conclusive or be admissible as evidence in a paternity case in a Staten Island court of law, the DNA test must be sound. A man may have easy access to DNA testing in a mobile unit on any street corner in New York City. The mobile unit could presumably provide him a result for no more than a few hundred bucks. Nevertheless, a Staten Island Family Court judge would be reticent about ruling on a paternity test done in a Winnebago. The usual, and certainly reasonable, expectation is that the facility that takes care of the DNA test to be used as evidence in a paternity case is a court-approved laboratory, or at minimum it must be one that has the relevant accreditation from the state agencies designated by the US Department of Health and Human Services.
Ensure that you hire a family attorney who is familiar with the paternity laws if you are seeking to start paternity. Any mom wanting to petition for child support should also look for an experienced Staten Island paternity lawyer to develop court-recognized child paternity.
Think about the tips in this article so that you can get help for your paternity case today.
#1: Know what you are getting from your lawyer
Whether you go with our law firm or anyone else, you need to know the name of the attorney that will be spearheading your case. This way, any time that you pick up the phone or opening email, you will know exactly which professionals are available to serve you.
The name of the game with these cases is to start by filing a petition of paternity. This is important whether you are the mother of a child looking to establish parental rights or a father looking to secure his own rights to paternity. This petition must explain why the man in question is believed to be the father and will give you legal grounding that you need to proceed with a court mandated paternity test.
#2: Honor the petition timetables
In the state of New York, after a paternity petition is filed, the alleged father will have time to respond before the courts step in. For instance, a man may feel as though he is wrong with being targeted and will be able to hire a lawyer to help craft his written response. The next step is to have an initial hearing in court to lay the parameters of the situation and decide whether moving forward with a paternity test is the necessary next step.
Default Judgment of Paternity in a Paternity Case
If a presumed father does not respond to a summons in a paternity case within the time frame established by law, then the family court can enter what is known as a default judgment. A default judgment will declare the putative father the legal father of the child in question. Barring some outlying circumstance, a default judgment cannot easily be set aside once it becomes the final order of the court.
#3: Be sure to fight for parental rights, custody or support
Once the case is settled and it is clear that a father has been established, you need to take the next appropriate actions in the case. For one person, this might mean filing for child support, while another person may need to look into visitation schedules that are fair for everyone. Hiring a lawyer will help you to hash out every detail of this and make sure that the child is cared for.
No matter what sort of help you need in a New York parental rights and paternity case, be sure that the child’s needs remain the most important step in the equation at all times.
Who Has Judicial Jurisdiction a New York Paternity Case?
In the state of New York, the family court has judicial jurisdiction over paternity cases. In other words, the family court has the authority to establish paternity. On top of that, the family court has the power to hand down related orders that are naturally associated with the establishment of paternity. These include orders addressing matters like child support, child custody, and parenting time or visitation.
A Putative Father’s Acknowledgment of Paternity
New York law provides that a putative father has the right and ability to acknowledge paternity. The term putative father describes a man who is thought to possibly be the father of a child born out of wedlock, but who has not been legally identified as the father of that child.
His acknowledgment can be prepared and submitted to the registrar in the state of New York where the birth certificate was previously filed. Provided that there is no objection to the acknowledgment of paternity, no further legal action is required for this.
That said, there may very well be an objection to the acknowledgment of paternity. First, another man who believes he is true the father of a child born out of wedlock may come forward and take legal action to object to the acknowledgment of paternity. Second, the birth mother of the child might also object to an acknowledgment if she believes that someone else is true the father of her child born out of wedlock.
Sixty days must pass from the filing of the acknowledgment of paternity and the commencement of any legal action challenging it. The specific grounds set forth in New York legislation upon which an objection to a paternity acknowledgment can be filed are an allegation of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact.
We are a family law firm that is highly rated and recommended all throughout New York City. Since New York City is one of the busiest cities in the world, you know that we are used to handling any sort of case and have seen it all in a court of law. We can get you the legal backing that you need to establish fatherhood for your child so that you have legal rights clearly outlined and established.
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