Solway Father’s Rights Attorney
As a father, your role in your child’s life is crucial, whether unmarried or divorced from the child’s mother. You can provide essential support, guidance, and valuable advice, especially during challenging times. However, some fathers face difficulties exercising their parental rights due to being unmarried to the child’s mother or recently divorced.
The state acknowledges the significance of involving both parents in a child’s life in Tennessee. Therefore, they have policies to assist fathers in establishing their paternity before they can be actively engaged in their child’s life. Establishing paternity offers advantages to both the father and the child. If any issues arise where the mother attempts to obstruct the father from building a relationship with the child, the law supports the father’s rights.
If you wish to fight for your father’s rights or even question whether you are the child’s father, work with our experienced Solway father’s rights attorney at John T. Sholly, Attorney and Counselor at Law. We provide a comprehensive legal service for anyone facing family legal issues, including fighting for one’s father’s rights.
Our clients are guaranteed that their cases will be handled with compassion and care while personalizing the legal strategy that will be used to achieve the ideal result for the issue at hand. We can even help you fight against claims that you are the child’s father and get your father’s rights terminated if there is reason for you to question it.
Call John T. Sholly, Attorney and Counselor at Law at (865) 276-7228 for your consultation with a Solway Father’s Rights Attorney.
Establishing Father’s Rights
In Tennessee, paternity for a child with married or divorced parents is very straightforward. The husband is presumed the child’s father if the child was born during their marriage or 300 days following the divorce.
Unmarried fathers cannot be considered as a child’s father unless they establish their paternity through legal channels. These legal channels are:
- Signing the Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity (VAP) form before a notary public to legalize the child’s parentage. Usually, this is signed after a child is born. If one cannot sign it at the hospital, they may sign it at their nearest Health Department, the State Office of Vital Records, or the Child Support Office.
- Requesting a court order to validate your paternity, especially if you are not married to the child’s mother. DNA testing may be requested to formalize the declaration.
- DNA testing is the most efficient way to establish paternity since it is biological proof that the man who signed the child’s birth certificate or the one claiming to be the father is true.
Once a man voluntarily acknowledges that the child is his, they must fulfill their responsibilities as a parent. This includes paying child support and answering their child’s expenses. They must also be able to provide the child with emotional support, especially as they grow.
You can trust the Solway father’s rights attorney at John T. Sholly, Attorney and Counselor at Law to guide you through the legal channels you can use to establish your paternity. Our team will sit down with you to prepare all the necessary documentation and evidence for the case and negotiate with the mother.
Importance of Legally Protecting Your Relationship
Fighting for your rights as a father has many advantages, not just for you but also for your child. First, it allows you both the opportunity to build a connection that may not have been possible before because the mother of your child is preventing it from happening. You have the backing of the law to make this possible, and you can further strengthen it by proving your paternity through DNA testing.
Second, protecting your relationship ensures that the children have access to financial support and benefits from their parents. They will also be aware of their background, especially their medical history. Finally, it will give you and your child legitimacy regarding your familial relationship, which may have been impossible if you are not legally recognized as their parent.
Our Solway father’s rights attorney can help you legitimize your father’s rights and ensure that your child’s mother does not hamper the process. We will also mobilize immediately should the mother deny you to practice your rights as a mother. If needed, we will create a case so you can be considered your child’s leading provider and the one who should be provided with child support.
Divorced Father’s Rights
For fathers who have undergone a divorce, their father’s rights will not be affected, and they will not be required to prove their paternity unless there is due cause to question it.
Tennessee also ensures that both parents have equal parenting time after a divorce, and divorced fathers can even be given custody of their child if it is in their child’s best interest.
Your assigned Solway father’s rights attorney is always available to help you fight for your father’s rights if your ex-spouse does not recognize them. We can also help you fight for child custody and support if you believe your child should be in your care. Our team is also ready to provide resources to help you understand your rights better.
Contesting Established Paternity
While it is rare, there are cases where a father questions the true paternity of a child they believe is theirs or even outright denies that they are the child’s father. For some, they were listed by the mother as the father even if they did not have a long relationship that would warrant it. Others may even be a victim of paternity fraud, while a few may say there is conclusive evidence for them to question it.
Suppose a person wishes to contest existing paternity or supposed paternity. In that case, they must file a petition to the court, which will review the chance to see if there is a just reason to terminate paternity. A DNA test may also be ordered to validate the claims.
If it is proven through the test that they are not the father of the child, all legal rights and obligations are canceled unless they wish to continue being the child’s father. They may also rescind the VAP within 60 days of its execution; however, there must be a valid reason for it to be considered by the court.
At John T. Sholly, Attorney and Counselor at Law, you can be assured that we will handle your petition carefully to protect the child’s well-being. We can help you sort out the DNA test and ensure all parties recognize it. If the result shows that you are not the child’s parent, we will do our best to help you stay in touch with them and keep your relationship strong despite the petition.
Talk To A Legal Professional Today
Whether you are unmarried to your child’s mother or divorced, you deserve to be involved in your child’s life and let them know you are always there for them. So if you are deprived of your father’s rights, or you wish to let it known that you are the father of your child, don’t hesitate to contact our Solway, Tennessee family law firm at any time.
We are committed to helping you secure your father’s rights and ensure the other party recognizes them. We can sit down with you and your child’s other parent to create the best parenting plan and represent you in court. You can also trust us to explain the laws so you can follow through with the proceedings and make the best legal decision so we can resolve your case in the best way possible.
Our client-focused attorney is dedicated to providing exceptional service and understands the importance of convenience for our clients. As such, our lawyer offers the flexibility of meeting clients at their preferred location, including their home or any other convenient venue. This personalized approach ensures that clients feel comfortable and at ease during their consultations.
Call John T. Sholly, Attorney and Counselor at Law at (865) 276-7228 for your consultation with a Solway Father’s Rights Attorney.
