Legitimation is Necessary to Secure Your Rights
If you are unmarried when your child is born, you have no rights in relation to your son or daughter unless you personally gave birth to him or her. Being listed on the birth certificate does not give you any rights to your child in Georgia. In fact, it only guarantees that you are obligated to pay child support. That’s a tough pill to swallow when your biological drive to care for your children kicks in. It’s even harder when someone else tells you that you can’t do what you know is best for your child. In order to secure your rights, you need to legitimate your child. Not only do you need a court order for legitimation, but you also need a court order for custody/visitation rights and the rights to make decisions on anything related to your child’s health, education, religion, and extra-curricular activities. Therefore, you need to know exactly how to navigate your legitimation action so these rights don’t get left out.
Fight for the Best Custody Arrangement
Did you know that you can be required to pay child support without having any right to see your child? Your child’s mother can legally deny you time with your child until you obtain court orders rewarding you visitation and custody rights. The most common scenario is a mother not allowing you time with your child unless you pay child support. Without a court order, she can legally do that with no consequence. Don’t let her use your child as a pawn! Secure your parental rights through a properly filed legitimation action so that you can spend time with the child that you are paying to raise.
Avoid Excessive Child Support Payments
In Georgia, a judge can order child support on mere proof that you are the biological parent. One of the most unfortunate situations is when a parent legitimizes a child but ends up with minimal visitation and an excessive child custody payment. This burden can last up to eighteen years with surprise expenses, such as medical bills, coming up along the way. While any parent without primary physical custody should expect to pay some child support, the amount needs to be affordable. An improperly filled out child support worksheet can be devastating. A legitimation attorney can help you properly calculate your income, deduct any allowable expenses, and possibly allocate deviations to reduce the amount of child support that you must pay. We want you to be able to support your children on your own terms, not those of another parent. Remember, you can always choose to spend more on your child.
Legitimize Early to Gain an Advantage
As with any legal matter, early action is the best way to create an advantage. Our legitimation attorneys can help you get the upper hand by starting work on your case sooner rather than later. Don’t wait until she keeps you from seeing you child! Get in touch with Lankford & Moore Law’s fantastic family law attorneys today to maximize your chance for success and protect your relationship with your child. We provide a case assessment with an attorney so you can see how our experts can help from the start. We are proud to help you fight for your rights.
