Articles Posted in Paternity

Most divorce cases require the parties to address and resolve many challenging issues, such as the division of marital property, spousal support, and other financial matters. But it is important to realize that each case (and each family) is different. Some spouses disagree over child custody and visitation, while others may see eye to eye on matters of physical and legal custody. Because of the unique nature of each divorce, parties contemplating the end of their marriage are encouraged to consult with a highly experienced San Diego family law attorney who will know the best way to approach each individual case.

A recent California divorce garnering national attention involves the fate of the couple’s frozen embryos. According to a news article, Dr. Mimi Lee and her husband Stephen Findley were married five years ago. Just prior to the wedding, Lee found out that she had breast cancer, and the couple decided to create and freeze five embryos. Findley filed for divorce two years ago and sought to have the embryos destroyed, in accordance with the consent agreement the parties signed prior to engaging in the reproductive technology.
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Child support is an important part of most family law cases involving minor children. Courts will order child support not only in divorce cases, but in paternity actions as well. Section 3900 of the California family code governs child support and provides, in part, that both the mother and father of a minor child have an equal responsibility to support their child. The code further provides that this obligation continues generally until the child completes 12th grade or attains the age of 19 years, whichever occurs first. But in many cases, one parent may not be satisfied with the child support order and file an objection with the court. There are important legal concepts at play in any child support case. If you are involved in a divorce or paternity matter, it is important to contact an experienced family law attorney from the local San Diego area, someone who can help sort through the myriad issues with ease and confidence.

In a recent California child support case, a couple lived together and had two children but never married. When they separated, the couple stipulated to a paternity action judgment, which set forth the father’s paternity, his visitation rights, and a monthly monetary child support payment to be made to the mother, who was awarded physical custody of the kids. A bit later on, the couple reconciled and the father moved into the residence where the mother and children had been living. But after nine months, the father moved out. The court was asked to determine a matter of first impression in the state: whether a father can obtain any credit for actual, in-the-home child support he afforded the children during the nine-month period he lived with them and their mother?
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California law provides a means by which one may establish the existence of a parent/child relationship. As is relevant to the case described below, under former Section 7611 of the Uniform Parentage Act, a man is presumed to be the natural father of a child if (among other things) he and the child’s mother are or have been married to each other, and the child is born during the marriage. That presumption may be “rebutted,” and another man may be deemed the father. The interplay of California’s laws relating to matters of marriage, divorce, and questions of paternity is complicated and can affect many serious issues such as child support and other related factors. If you are facing a divorce or questions concerning paternity, you are encouraged to contact an experienced San Diego family law attorney who can help to protect your rights.

The law allows for an “interested party” to bring an action at any time to determine the existence or nonexistence of a parental relationship. In a recent case, the trial court ruled that the mother’s petition to establish a relationship between her son and a man other than her husband (referred herein as “P”) was untimely filed. Here, the mother separated from her husband, who lives in the Philippines, in 2006. In February 2008, she began a relationship with a married man. Later that year, in November, the mother gave birth to “H.” Interestingly enough, her husband’s name was listed on the birth certificate and baptismal invitations as the child’s father. Despite this, while the other man established and maintained a relationship with H since he was born, he never publicly or openly acknowledged that H was his son and ended the relationship with the child when the couple stopped seeing one another.

In July 2011, when the couple’s relationship ended, the mom filed a paternity action to establish a relationship between H and P, seeking not only a declaration that P was H’s father but also child support. P denied that he was the father and asked the court to declare that her husband, whom she never divorced, was H’s presumed father. Even though the trial court ruled that the Code’s conclusive presumption did not apply because the husband was not living with the mom when the child was conceived or born, it refused to order genetic testing under that section of the statute. Further, the trial court characterized the mom’s action as an effort to establish the non-existence of a parent relationship between her husband and H, and ruled that it was untimely because it was not brought within a “reasonable time” under the law.
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