Paternity Family Law Attorneys with Years of Experience

Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP offers more than 57 years of collective family law advice experience, committed to addressing your family’s legal issues throughout the legal proceedings.

Paternity is a more complex area of law than most people think. Not only can the question of paternity be personally important for a father-to-be, but it can also greatly affect legal issues such as child custody and child support in a divorce or separation.

Questions of paternity can have far-reaching legal ramifications, as the custody rights to children are called into question and the duty to provide child support is involved.

As with any legal issue regarding parenthood, issues involving paternity can be quite complex, not to mention extremely important for everyone involved.

As paternity plays a large role in many legal issues, such as child custody and child support, the results of a paternity test can have a major impact on a family.

So, it’s not something you want just anyone to have control over.

Without the right legal representation, you may find your rights as a parent overlooked due to technicalities of law, or you may be coerced into making child support payments for another individual’s child.

If you have current concerns regarding paternity that could have significant consequences for your life, you need a responsible, committed San Diego paternity attorney that you can count on to vigorously represent your best interest throughout your case.

Thus, when you are dealing with paternity issues, we use our many years of experience and our wealth of knowledge to fight to protect your rights and interests as best as possible.

Contact the family lawyers of Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP, at (760) 757-6854 today.

Paternity Actions

Paternity is a critical legal issue in cases that involve a father’s right to see his child and his duty under the law to support his children.

No matter what sort of paternity issue you are facing, our knowledgeable, well-qualified legal staff can advise you throughout the entire process.

If you are concerned about your rights or obligations as a father, our attorneys are prepared to assist you with paternity issues that include:

• Paternity testing
• Child custody and visitation rights
• Child support
• Paternity actions

With modern DNA testing, the paternity of a child can be determined with nearly complete accuracy, making it a decisive measure in family law disputes.

If you believe that your rights are being abused in your current child custody or child support situation, taking legal action now can help you to protect yourself and your family.
DNA tests today are capable of proving or disproving paternity with an accuracy approaching 100%.

If you have been ordered to pay child support but suspect that you are not the birth father, or have been denied child custody or visitation because you are not believed to be father, our San Diego Paternity Law Attorney can help to resolve your dispute.

We can assist you with filing or defending against a paternity action so that your role is legally and conclusively decided.

Establishing Parentage

A paternity test is a DNA test that determines whether a man could be the father of a particular child or not. It can be conducted using blood or saliva samples, and these days the accuracy of DNA testing is near 100%.

The mother and alleged father of a child are both legally entitled to request a paternity test if either one wishes to.

Why Is Establishing Parentage Important?

Paternity determines the legal rights and responsibilities that a man has towards a particular child. If a father wants the right to spend time with his child, he will probably need to prove in court that he is indeed the child’s father.

On the other hand, sometimes mothers need proof of paternity in order to collect child support from the fathers of their children.

An Oceanside paternity lawyer can help clients address problems such as:

• Underpayment or overpayment of child support
• Unjust custody arrangements
• Incorrect birth certificates

How Paternity Tests Can Help Unmarried Parents

If a couple has a child without being legally married, there is no legal custody arrangement that automatically exists between them.

If they want to establish parental rights towards the child, they will need to file a Complaint to Establish Parental Relations.

This legal action can do much more than arrange visitation plans for parents who have decided to separate.

Even if the couple never breaks up, they will need to file this complaint in order to establish their legal rights towards their child, especially the father’s.

Paternity Test Basics – ABO Blood Testing

Paternity testing is a scientific process which can determine if a man is the biological father of a child. Such tests are frequently useful in child custody and child support cases where parentage is important.

Whether a man wants to deny paternity or show that he is the biological parent of a child, there are two primary forms of testing used.

The ABO blood test is the simpler of the two main paternity testing methods. It revolves around the fact that a child’s blood type is determined in a fixed manner, and that there only four main blood types: A, B, AB, and O.

These blood types are determined by the combination of two alleles, one from each parent.Each allele can be either A, B, or O. The A and B alleles are co-dominant, while the O allele is recessive. This means that a child with an A blood type would have either two A alleles or an A allele and an O allele, while an AB child could only possibly have one A allele and one B allele, and a O-type child could only have two O alleles.

Some combinations are impossible. Two O-type parents, for example, could not possibly give birth to a child with an AB blood type.

Therefore, ABO blood testing could be used to rule out the possibility of paternity. That is, if a mother with O-type blood accuses another O-type man of being the father of her child, a test which revealed that the child had a AB blood type would contradict the accusation.

Paternity Testing: DNA Options

It used to be that the only ways to test the paternity on a child was through blood. Now, however, we have the ability to determine the paternity of a child through the use of DNA.

This can be a minimally invasive procedure that requires nothing more than a cheek swab.

There have been a number of DNA tests put into practice by forensic labs and paternity testing sites everywhere. Recently, there have been advances that have sped up the entire process while also increasing the accuracy of the testing being done.

One of the most recent advancements, implemented during the early 1990s, allows for a strand of DNA to be expanded and replicated which gives scientists a better chance of accurately identifying who the father is.

The DNA is acceptable through this method even when it is a very small sample that has been damaged being used.

Another DNA option is for use only through males. It allows for analysis of the Y chromosome. By analyzing the Y chromosome (which boys get only from their fathers), researchers are able to determine if two people are related through their father.

So while it doesn’t guarantee a match, if a boy and his reported father share Y chromosome features, there’s a very good chance that the reported father is the father.

Mitochondrial DNA does the same but works to identify the mother. The mother passes on mitochondrial DNA to all of her children so by analyzing mitochondrial DNA, it is possible to determine if people are related through the maternal side.

Paternity Fraud

An untold number of men find out each year that they have been misled to believe that they have fathered their female partners’ children. In many cases, the men spend great amounts of money and time raising these children because they believe that they are their own.

Men that find out they are not the fathers of the children they have been raising may be the victims of paternity fraud. If you recently found out that the child you have been raising is not yours, contact the San Diego paternity lawyers of Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP at 858-935-6211.

Reasons for Fraud

The primary motivation behind paternity fraud is the extra financial assistance the father can offer. Similar to all other types of fraud, paternity fraud could be deemed a criminal act in some jurisdictions. Furthermore, it could be viewed as a civil wrong.

This is important, as men may sue mothers to win back the money that they spent on the children involved.

Accusations of paternity fraud are generally settled with DNA tests. If the test shows that the plaintiff is not the biological father of the children in question, he may be relieved of legal and financial obligations related to the children.

It is important to keep in mind that hiring an experienced San Marcos paternity lawyer can be important when pursuing legal action. Reducing Family Law Issues Stemming from the Paternity Procedure

Challenges may surface when navigating the intricate aspects of Paternity Law, guaranteeing all necessary documents are filled out on time, submitted correctly, and delicate family circumstances, along with potential other legal issues, are resolved quickly.

That’s why our Law Firm’s Legal Services Team is committed to offering knowledgeable, proficient, and compassionate Paternity Law Representation to every client we counsel.
We know that dealing with a child’s legal matters is an emotional endeavor and sometimes other complicated family matters can detract from the positive family experience, so we want to avoid any issues that could have long term affects you and your loved ones.

Rest assured, that we are prepared whether your case includes other family law situations like an annulment, legal separation, divorce, guardianship, a child custody battle, or pursuing child support, we are prepared and have the time tested experience to assist you with these conflicts, as well.

Our team of Family Law Legal Professionals consistently obtain favorable solutions for our clients developing effective legal arbitration, mediation, and litigation strategies who are struggling with personal and/or marital disputes.

We use our expansive understanding of the Local Court’s Legal Procedures and California State Laws to tailor a plan specific Legal Strategy to the best interest of your family’s unique needs.

California Paternity Family Law Practice Services

One of the most important aspects to consider when hiring an Paternity Attorney is how proactive they are when it comes to representing your case.

Your personally dedicated San Marcos Paternity Lawyer will take preemptive measures to understand your legal situation and all the unique circumstances into consideration to reach the best possible outcome for you and your family.

Our aggressive family case law litigation tactics have proven to be successful year after year through Mediation and in the courtroom resulting in many beneficial resolutions and settlements for our clients.

Call us at (760) 757-6854 to schedule a complimentary case evaluation with our team.

Family Law Legal Cases We Routinely Handle Involving:

Divorce Law: Including Annulments, Contested, and Uncontested Divorces
Military Divorce Attorney: Experienced with uniques situations of Military Relationships
Mediation: Mediation encourages divorcing spouses to cooperate and avoid trial costs
Child Custody: Including Visitation, Negotiations, Modifications & Enforcement Actions
Child Support: Including Monitary Negotiations, Modifications & Enforcement Actions
Legal Guardianship: Application Preparation, Fitness Assessment, Legal Representation
Adoption: Including Step-Parent, Agency, Private, and International Adoptions
Prenuptial Agreement: We can help you draft and enforce favorable agreements
Paternity: Actions for those seeking custody rights and support payments
Legal Separation Agreement: Traditional and Same-Sex Marriages
Spousal Support (Alimony): Agreements for Spousal Support or Maintenance
Domestic Violence: Including representation for Abuse and those Accused of Abuse
Civil Harassment: We can help you seek a Civil Restraining & Enforcement Orders
Juvenile Court: Including guardianship, juvenile delinquency, and dependency matters
Marital Property Division: Representation as you divide property during divorce
Estate Planning: Including wills and probate