Paternity Child Support Lawyer Attorney Jacksonville Family Law Florida

Paternity

A paternity action takes place when a child is born to parents who are not married. An action with a child born out-of-wedlock is controlled by Florida Statutes. When a child is born to unmarried parents, the mother, by statute, is the guardian of the child. Basically, a father has no rights even if his name appears on the birth certificate. A father must be declared the father by the Court to have any rights (i.e. custody or visitation) regarding the child. If either parent has any question as to whether the father is the actual biological father, a DNA paternity test must be requested and ordered by the Court. If both parents agree that the father is the biological father, then no test is needed.

Child Custody and Visitation

In most cases parents will share custody and will be jointly responsible for ensuring that major decisions affecting the welfare of the child will be determined jointly. One parent may be the Primary Custodial Parent, meaning that parent’s home will be the primary residence of the child. The other parent is then the Secondary Custodial Parent and normally would be ensured frequent and continuing contact with the child. When the parents can’t agree on who should have primary custody, the court will order a child custody evaluation.

The child custody evaluator will be a person jointly agreed on by the judge and both parties, and who is recognized by the judge and the attorneys for both parties as someone whose training and background make them uniquely able to help the court determine which parent would be best suited to have primary custody. Both parties will share the cost of the evaluator unless ordered otherwise. For more detailed information about what’s involved in a child custody evaluation, click here.

In today’s Paternity proceedings, both mother and father are given the same consideration in determining custody regardless of the children’s age or sex. Because of historical experiences, there is a public perception that the mother has automatic custody unless she is judged to be unfit. This is no longer true. The father has an equal opportunity to gain primary custody, depending on the unique aspects of the case and on the best interests of the children.

If the court determines that shared parental custody would not be in the best interests of the child, then one parent may be given sole parental responsibility and custody. Grandparents’ visitation rights may also become an issue to be determined by the courts, according to the unique circumstances of the child’s situation.
Child Support

Shared parental responsibility also means shared parental financial support for the children. The secondary custodial parent will be required to provide a reasonable share of the cost of housing, food, clothing, education, medical and other needs typically provided by Florida parents. Guidelines for child support are provided in Florida Statutes. [Florida Statute 61.30]. One factor that can lessen the amount of child support to be paid by the non-custodial parent is the time-sharing arrangement. If the non-custodial parent has the children more than 40% overnights, then his or her child support obligation will be reduced or eliminated, depending on the financial circumstances of the parties.
Relocation

Parents must consult each other on the issue of relocation. The primary custodial parent can no longer relocate more than 50 miles away from his or her current residence without the agreement of the secondary custodial parent and by following the procedures outlined in Florida Statute. [Florida Statute 61.13001]. Since the statute became law in 2006, relocation is now a hot issue in the family court and strict compliance is followed.