Georgia Legitimation, Paternity & Guardianship Attorneys
It is important that children have people who are legally responsible for bringing them up and taking care of them. Legitimation, paternity and guardianship are legal procedures that exist under Georgia law in order to make sure that happens.
At Jackson Steed, we help parents and caretakers establish their rights over children so they can care for them more effectively. Based in Atlanta, we serve clients in Fulton, DeKalb, Clayton, Henry, Fayette, Cobb, Cherokee and surrounding counties. Contact us to discuss your case with a knowledgeable lawyer.
Helping Unmarried Parents Get Child Support and Custody
Legitimation and paternity are legal procedures for figuring out who the father of a child is. When a child is born to a married woman, her husband is automatically considered the father, but when the mother is unmarried, the father needs to be legally recognized.
Simply putting the father's name on the birth certificate is not enough to establish a child's paternity under Georgia law. A separate legal procedure needs to take place.
This procedure is called legitimation when it is started by the father and paternity when it is started by the mother. In both cases, the other party can sign a consent or acknowledgement form or the case can go to a judge, who may order a DNA test.
Once a child's father is legally recognized, he has the full legal rights and responsibilities of a parent. At that point, the two parties can come to a settlement or the court can make a decision about child custody and support.
Helping Caretakers Obtain Legal Guardianship
There are many situations where children are cared for by people other than their parents, such as grandparents, aunts and uncles. When the parents are out of the picture, it can be difficult to enroll children in school or take them to the doctor.
In Georgia, guardianship is a legal procedure that caretakers can use to gain some of the rights that parents normally have. Guardianship can be done with the parents' consent or with a court order if the parents have died or cannot be found.
To discuss your potential legitimation, paternity or guardianship case with an experienced family law attorney, contact us today.
