Paternity Actions in Florida
A paternity action is the formal name given to a legal action to determine the father of a child born outside of marriage.
Paternity actions may be filed for a number of reasons, including:
- The Florida Department of Revenue may file a limited paternity action to determine the legal father of a child, if the mother has applied for welfare. The state of Florida will seek out the child's father to force the father to make child support contributions.
- A mother may file a paternity action to determine the legal father of her child, in order to seek child support from the child's father.
- A father may file a paternity action, or may respond to a paternity action, in order to seek custody of — or visitation rights with — a child he fathered.
Paternity Actions and DNA Tests
If a paternity action is filed, and the alleged father does not admit paternity (or fatherhood), then the court will order DNA testing to determine if the alleged father is the biological father of the child.
If the court rules that paternity is established, then the child's biological father becomes his legal father — with all the rights and responsibilities that accompany parenthood.
If a man believes he may be the father of a child, he needs to register with the Florida Putative Father Registry. Follow this link for information on the Florida Putative Father Registry
For more information on related subjects, see the following pages of this Web site: Child Custody & Visitation, Unmarried Parents, Common Law Marriages, and Fathers' Rights.
Legal Representation in Paternity Actions
The Law Office of Cohen & Storie, located in Orlando, Florida, represents both mothers and fathers in paternity actions, and in related actions to establish child support or parenting time.
Our law office is led by two attorneys who are former criminal prosecutors with a well-established private law practice emphasizing family law and criminal defense. Attorneys Corey Cohen and Andrew Storie bring to their private law practice the same energy and zeal that brought them success when they worked as public prosecutors — combined with a compassion for their clients' problems and a dedication to meeting their clients' needs.
Contact the Law Office of Cohen & Storie
If you have questions about a paternity action — either as a mother or an alleged father — the lawyers at the Law Office of Cohen & Storie can help.
Contact us today to schedule an appointment.
Call 407-246-0888 or send us an e-mail.
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