Not too long ago, questions of paternity were something like gambling. You could take a blood test, but was hardly conclusive and if a mother denied the paternity of a man and the blood test did not match, his effort to be named as the father could be frustrated. Today, with the advent of DNA testing, the scientific accuracy of the test is now virtually 100 percent, and a mother’s protestations now have less force.
For most men, fatherhood is very important, and the opportunity to be viewed as a parent of their children is equally important. It is more than simply being recognized as the father, but the opportunity to share in the experience of raising and shaping the development of the child.
This is why during many divorces men find it necessary to aggressively assert their rights as a father. Some women mistakenly feel after a divorce they only need the child’s father as a source of child support payments, and they are the “true” parent.
This can also occur in circumstances involving unmarried parents, where the woman, because of a deterioration of their relationship with the father, may believe they have a right to keep the child from the father.
In cases like this, a father may need to use the legal process of paternity, which will allow them to demand a test of the child to determine paternity. This process can be complex, and working with an attorney can ensure that all of the necessary steps are done to ensure as rapid as possible a resolution for this issue.
For couples that are not married and have a good relationship, a paternity determination is still important, as it ensures that in a medical emergency, the child will have access to the father’s medical insurance and it also prevents problems with inheritance, should the father unexpectedly die.
