An unmarried father and mother who are no longer together have to work out their child custody situation. Unmarried parents face the same decisions as divorced parents about child custody agreements, child support, and raising the children in separate households. Here’s some information about unmarried parents and child custody that can help in making those decisions.
Before beginning a child custody case, an unmarried mother or father should make sure to establish paternity. There are several situations where this needs to happen. In some situations, the father is present at the birth or knows about the child from the beginning and is involved. He can sign a paternity acknowledgement when the baby is born or before. However, there are some situations where a man may not know he is the father of a child. The mother should approach him and tell him he is the father. If the man is unsure that he is the father, he can have a paternity test to make sure. A man should get a paternity test before he signs a paternity acknowledgement because once paternity is established the man is responsible financially and otherwise for the child. If a mother informs a man he is the father but he refuses to acknowledge paternity or take a test, she can file a paternity claim against him. This means that the court will order the man to take a paternity test. If he is the father he can sign the papers. If he doesn’t sign, he will have to go to court and prove that he isn’t the father (this is almost impossible because paternity tests are so accurate).
Once the issue of paternity is taken care of, the mother and father should come up with a custody agreement or parenting plan. These are the documents that outline how the child will be raised. It specifies which parent will have custody of the children and who has the right to make decisions about the child. The parents should also come up with a custody and visitation schedule so that the mother and father both have the opportunity to see the child. Once the agreement is set, the parents go to court and get the plan accepted as a custody order. This makes everything legally binding.
An unmarried parent who has the majority of custody of a child should receive child support from the other parent. In order to get child support started, the parent must file for child support and have the court order it. If the other parent refuses to pay, the parent can go back to court and the court will help get the money.
Unmarried parents have the same resources for child custody situations that divorced parents have. They can consult with an attorney, go to mediation, get help from the court, etc. They should use all of these resources to come up with a custody arrangement that’s best for their child.