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If you are an unmarried father, it can feel as if your parental rights are precarious at best. The fact is that if you’re not married at the time of your child’s birth and if the mother is not willing to officially acknowledge your paternity, you have no legal rights until you establish them.
In other words, the sooner you consult with an experienced Round Rock father’s rights lawyer, the better prepared you’ll be to secure your rights as your child’s father.
The Matter of Paternity
When a child is born to a married couple, they are both recognized as the child’s legal parents in the State of Texas and the matter of paternity – or who the child’s father is – needn’t be addressed.
If you are an unmarried father, however, paternity is a primary concern because, until it’s established, you’ll have no parental rights. As an unmarried father, in other words, establishing paternity of your child should be your primary concern.
There are three basic means of establishing paternity in Texas.
Voluntary Paternity Establishment
If you and your child’s mother agree that you are the child’s father, you can establish paternity voluntarily with an Acknowledgement of Paternity signed by each of you. You can take care of this in the hospital at the time of your child’s birth, or you can file the legal document at any time before or after their birth.
An Agreed Paternity Order
An agreed paternity order not only establishes the father’s paternity but also addresses their legal rights and responsibilities regarding all the following:
Child custody and visitation – or parenting time
Child support
Medical support
An agreed paternity order means that the parents are in agreement regarding the father’s paternity and the terms included.
Court Ordered Paternity
When either party disagrees regarding the matter of paternity, a court order resolving the issue, which generally translates to a DNA test, is required. This can be initiated by either the mother or the father, but the court can also require the testing on its own – such as in response to the mother seeking benefits for the child through the state.
When the court orders paternity testing, it sets the stage for establishing legal rights for the father as well as for ordering child support.
The Legal Terms Associated with Fatherhood
While the mother is automatically identified as a child’s biological and legal mother at the time she gives birth, the same is not true of the father. In fact, the law identifies fathers in a range of categories.
The Presumed Father
A man who is assigned legal parental rights as a result of one of the following being true is the child’s presumed father:
He was married to the mother when the child was born.
He was married to the mother within 300 days of the child’s birth.
He lived with the mother on a continuous basis for the child’s first two years of life, and during this time, he represented himself as the child’s father.
A father who doesn’t deny their presumed fatherhood is the child’s presumed father in the eyes of the law, and this means that he has parental rights.
The Biological Father
Like the biological mother, the biological father refers to what most people consider the child’s birth father. If the biological parents aren’t married at the time of their child’s birth, paternity must be established.
The Alleged Father
When the State of Texas uses the term alleged father, they are referring to a man who, either the mother or he, himself, claims to be the father of the child in question. Before an alleged father is awarded parental rights, paternity must be established by one of the means discussed above.
The Legal Father
A child’s legal father is a man who – although he wasn’t the presumed father – established legal parental rights in one of the following ways:
By voluntarily filing an Acknowledgement of Paternity
By establishing paternity through a court order, which usually means DNA testing
By not denying presumed fatherhood that is established via a means other than being married to the mother at the time of the child’s birth
As an unmarried father, establishing your paternity is the only way to establish your corresponding legal rights, and the best path forward is with a trusted father’s rights attorney on your side.
An Unmarried Father’s Rights in Texas
Once you’ve established paternity of your child, you are greenlighted to pursue your parental rights, but the process can be challenging. Texas courts always make child custody determinations according to the child's interests, and the status quo – or the child’s current circumstances – carries considerable weight.
This means that if your child’s current living situation with their mother is serving them well, the court may be hesitant to impose considerable changes. On the other hand, Texas courts adhere to the prevailing wisdom that children’s best interests are best served when they can develop strong relationships with both parents by spending considerable time with each.
Texas courts take a wide range of factors into consideration when ruling on child custody cases, but if you are an unmarried father who hasn’t had access to your child to date, you may have to build up to earning a robust parenting time schedule.
The Tender Years Doctrine
Texas courts consider what is called a child’s tender years in child custody cases. This refers to the enhanced developmental needs of children who are under the age of three. When breastfeeding, for example, is involved, it’s a time-consuming process that requires the mother’s presence and can limit the father’s visitation schedule.
The Best Interest Factors
As an unmarried father in Texas, the matter of your child custody rights will be determined in relation to best interest factors like the following:
Each parent’s age and overall physical and mental health
The child’s age, developmental stage, and physical and emotional needs, including any special needs
Each parent’s ability and desire to effectively address all the child’s needs
The level of involvement each parent has had with raising the child to date
The degree to which each parent is committed to effective co-parenting
The degree to which each parent is committed to supporting the other’s close parental relationship with the child
How well the child’s current living situation addresses their needs
The distance the parents live from one another
Whether domestic violence or child abuse or neglect is a concern
If you’ve had little interaction with your child to date as a result of the fact that you’re an unmarried father who had no automatic right to child custody, several of these best-interest factors can work against you.
Conversely, many of these factors reflect the court’s stance that children are better off when they have close relationships with both parents. With seasoned legal guidance in your corner, you’ll be far better positioned to fiercely advocate for favorable child custody orders that honor your rights as a parent and support your close and ongoing relationship with your child.
Everyone Benefits from the Establishment of Paternity
The State of Texas firmly believes that everyone benefits from the establishment of paternity.
The Child
It is in the child's best interest to form a bond and foster a strong relationship with both parents, and by establishing paternity, you firm up your parental rights and can enjoy a relationship with your child that enriches both of your lives. The value of this parent/child relationship can’t be overstated, but it’s not the end of the matter.
The establishment of paternity also ensures all the following benefits for your child:
Your child will have more robust financial support – through the child support order that’s established in relation to paternity.
You can include your child on your employer-sponsored health insurance coverage and can identify them as a beneficiary on financial tools.
Your child gains eligibility regarding any benefits you receive, such as veterans or disability benefits.
Your child gains the right to inherit through the state’s laws of intestacy.
Your child will have a more comprehensive understanding of their own medical history.
Your family members will expand the number of loved ones and supporters your child has on their side.
The benefits your child experiences in relation to the establishment of paternity shouldn’t be underestimated.
You – as the Unmarried Father
Until you establish paternity, you won’t have any parental rights as an unmarried father. Once you do, however, your legal right to build a solid, loving relationship with your child opens up, and the emotional rewards are difficult to quantify. Establishing paternity also reaps the following benefits:
The right to see your child’s medical and school records
The right to a parenting time schedule
The right to have your child share your last name – if their mother is in agreement on the matter
In your quest to obtain a parenting time schedule, which reflects physical custody, you can also seek legal custody. Legal custody refers to the parental right to make primary decisions on behalf of your child, including decisions like the following:
Decisions about the medical care they receive
Decisions about their education and daycare
Decisions about their participation in extracurriculars
Decisions about their religious upbringing
If you share legal custody with your child’s mother, you’ll have the right to participate in making the kinds of important decisions that shape your child’s upbringing. Your dedicated father’s rights attorney will skillfully pursue terms that include a favorable legal custody determination.
The Mother
When paternity is established, the mother also stands to benefit. To begin, the child support that is typically generated can help alleviate the financial burden of raising the child on her own.
Additionally, having access to the father’s health records allows her to attend to the child’s health more carefully. There is also the emotional benefit of having another adult to share the immense responsibility of raising a child with – in addition to the free time afforded by the father’s parenting time schedule.
FAQ
The answers to the following frequently asked questions about paternity and father’s rights can help you address your own concerns.
Do I have any rights as an unmarried father in Texas?
In Texas, you have no parental rights as an unmarried father until you establish paternity. If you and the mother agree on the matter, you can do this voluntarily in the hospital or request a DNA test through the court. The sooner you resolve the matter, the sooner your rights can be established.
How can a father’s rights attorney help?
The matter of your parental rights is too important to leave to chance. With a dedicated father’s rights attorney on your side, your chances of obtaining favorable child custody terms are significantly improved.
Can an unmarried father ever become the primary custodial parent?
Yes, if it’s in the child's best interest, an unmarried father can be awarded the role of primary custodial parent in Texas. However, for a child of tender years – or who is under the age of three – this scenario is unlikely unless there is a serious reason for such a ruling.
Reach Out to an Experienced Round Rock Father’s Rights Attorney Today
Brett Pritchard at The Law Office of Brett H. Pritchard is a skilled Round Rock father’s rights attorney who is committed to unleashing the full scope of his imposing experience to protect your parental rights as an unmarried father.
Learn more about what we can do to help by contacting or calling us at 254-781-4222 and scheduling your free consultation today.