Can You Get Out of Paying Child Support by Disproving Paternity
My question involves child support in the State of: Florida
At the time of a child's birth, a husband doesn't know the wife was unfaithful & signs the birth certificate & believes the child to be his only to find out years later (after they have divorced) that he's not the biological father, can he go back to court and be released from paying child support?
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
Tough question and the topic doesn't easily lend itself to googling.
Husband needs to see an attorney ASAP.
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
I'm not sure the age matters at this point - if paternity wasn't disestablished as part of the divorce proceedings, it's a done deal as far as Legal Dad is concerned.
The only person it might matter to is Biological Dad if he wants to try and step up to the plate.
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
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puppetjr
Child is 6 yrs. old.
So, dad's been dad for six years and is willing to just give the child up? Its very unlikely that dad could disestablish paternity at this point, but even if he could, it would be a cruel thing to do to the child.
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
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Dogmatique
I'm not sure the age matters at this point - if paternity wasn't disestablished as part of the divorce proceedings, it's a done deal as far as Legal Dad is concerned.
The only person it might matter to is Biological Dad if he wants to try and step up to the plate.
Concur.
Dad, how did you discover the child was not yours, biologically speaking?
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
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llworking
So, dad's been dad for six years and is willing to just give the child up? Its very unlikely that dad could disestablish paternity at this point, but even if he could, it would be a cruel thing to do to the child.
Cruel on Dad's end, but not cruel that Mom deliberately lied to and deceived both her husband and her child?! Not to mention that she cheated on Dad too, and obviously didn't even bother to use birth control. And also possibly kept the child's bio father from having a relationship with his child (because we don't know that bio dad was or wasn't willing to get to the know the child)?
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
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Cruel on Dad's end, but not cruel that Mom deliberately lied to and deceived both her husband and her child?! Not to mention that she cheated on Dad too, and obviously didn't even bother to use birth control. And also possibly kept the child's bio father from having a relationship with his child (because we don't know that bio dad was or wasn't willing to get to the know the child)?
This might come as a giant surprise to you, but this sort of thing is NOT a contest to see who can be the biggest bag of assholes. No matter who wins, the child loses, and the courts aren't too keen on that outcome.
Re: Court Orders Child Support and Later Finds Your Not the Father
I'll ignore the sarcasm. You're right - there are no winners here. It's a sad and a shame that the OP's ex wife made such a selfish choice, as to hide the truth about the paternity of her child.
Maybe paternity tests should be mandatory for every single birth, to married parents or not. Then it wouldn't be so easy for some women to commit paternity fraud, and men who aren't the bio father of a child won't get unfairly stuck paying child support for a child they thought was theirs, but wasn't.
I don't see how forcing a man to wrongly pay child support, while giving the bio dad (and mom) a free pass helps the child at all. Dad can still be Dad to the child, even with no legal obligation to him.
And yes, I know, because my brother went through a similar situation with his ex wife and stepson. At least in his case though, his ex wife cheated on him before they were married, and for all her faults, at least had the decency to admit to what she did, and let him know that he was not her baby's bio father (yes, he had a DNA test too). So when they did eventually divorce, he didn't end up being on the hook for child support for years, for a kid that wasn't his. He did pay child support for his bio son though, and did/has raised his stepson like his own kid, even with no legal obligation to him.