Establishing Paternity – An Unmarried, Biological Father’s Challenge to His Child’s Adoption
In today’s society, it is becoming increasingly common for unmarried couples to have an unexpected child that either the mother or father, or both, decide to put up for adoption thus relinquishing their parental rights. But consider the situation where a couple may have been together 7 months before, broke up, and the ex-boyfriend found out directly from his ex-girlfriend that she is pregnant and due in two months. The mother decides to relinquish her parental rights to her own mother and father and wants to file a petition to that effect. Does the father, although unmarried to the mother, have any rights he may assert to contest such an action? In Florida, an unmarried biological father has the opportunity to assert his claim of paternity by filing the Florida Putative Father Registry Claim of Paternity form. Here is where you can find a sample form to fill out.
In Florida, an unmarried biological father has a right to assert his claim of paternity and obtain notice of a mother’s relinquishing of parental rights. But, to preserve these rights, the putative father must follow proper Florida procedure. In order for the putative father to preserve his right to notice and consent to an adoption, he must file a notarized claim of paternity form with the Florida Putative Father Registry which is kept by the Office of Vital Statistics of the Department of Health. When a putative father submits his paternity form to the Office of Vital Statistics, he consents to testing of his DNA as proof of being the father.
Timing of the biological father’s submission is also very important. To receive proper notice and reserve his ability to consent to the mother’s choices, the claim can be filed at any time before the birth, but may not be filed after the date the mother files a petition for termination of parental rights. For example, if three days after the birth, the mother decides to relinquish her parental rights, and the biological father has failed to submit a notarized claim of paternity, he has essentially waived his parental rights to be notified and provide consent to the mother’s decision. In Florida, the putative father should also realize that the interests of the state, the mother, the child, and the presumable adoptive parents outweigh his interests if he fails to take timely action to establish his relationship with the child.
If you are an unmarried man expecting a child with your significant other, consult an attorney to guarantee that your rights are properly safeguarded.
