Establishing or Denying Paternity in New Jersey

January 15, 2013 (Press-News.org) In the state of New Jersey, a man may exercise parental rights when he has established that he is a child's legal father. Rights may be asserted through marriage, a paternity form or paternity test. Once legal rights are established, a father may exercise his parental rights in regards to custody and visitation.

Establishing paternity

If a child's parents are married when the mother gives birth, a man is automatically considered the child's legal father. When parents of a child are not married at the time of birth, paternity must be recognized before the man may seek custody of his child. Furthermore, a mother cannot collect child support unless paternity is established.

One way to establish paternity in New Jersey is for the father to sign a Certificate of Parentage form, which can be obtained from the Office of Child Support and Paternity Programs.

However, if paternity is questioned by one party, rights can be established by genetic testing. In this case, a state facility performs the test by drawing blood from the mother, alleged father and child. If the test demonstrates that the man is the child's biological father, a court will legally confirm paternity for the man in question. The birth certificate can be amended, and the father can exercise is parental rights.

Child custody and visitation

Once paternity is recognized, a father and mother may assert rights to custody. In New Jersey, courts award custody based on the best interests of a child. In making the decision, courts will look to the following factors:
- Whether the parents can cooperate in raising the child
- The age of the child
- The child's relationship with each parent
- The ability of each parent to care for the child
- The child's preference

These are just a few of the issues that a court will consider.

Under New Jersey law, a court presumes that each parent should be involved in the child's life. If a father is not awarded custody, he may assert visitation rights. Visitation schedules are based on the schedules of the parents and child.

If a father is awarded visitation, the custodial parent must honor this right. If the custodial parent denies the father his visitation rights, the father must petition the court for enforcement of the visitation order.

Fathers and other men often confront challenges when establishing or contesting paternity. If you are currently facing such problems, it is extremely important to retain a knowledgeable family law attorney.

Article provided by Law Offices of Douglas I. Krompier MBA LLC
Visit us at www.krompierlaw.com/