When parents are not married to each other there can be complications when it comes to important matters regarding their child. Although a mother may be sure who the father of their child is, the legal establishment of paternity is still important. There are many good reasons why parents would want to establish legal paternity.
There are many benefits of establishing legal paternity in Florida. These include:
- It is important for a child to know they are part of the family. It also important for a father to know that they are legally the father of the child. It can help form a relationship between the father and child.
- Custody and visitation. If the parents are not living together, it is important to establish paternity before working out a custody and visitation arrangement.
- Before a father is ordered to pay child support, they must establish paternity. Establishing paternity does not only allow a child support agreement to be established but it also brings other financial benefits including life insurance, social security benefits, and inheritance rights.
- It is important to establish paternity of a child for medical history reasons. The child’s medical providers need to know the medical history of both sides of the family.
- Access to information. It is important for both parents to be notified about proceedings involving their child. By establishing paternity, parents will be notified about court proceedings, adoption proceedings, custody hearings, etc. Parents will also have access to school, medical and religious records.
A legal professional who is skilled in family law can help their client with their paternity issues. They are skilled at determining what legal action their client needs to take and how to go about it efficiently.