When to Contact a Paternity Lawyer?

Both men and women involved in paternity disputes can find experienced and dedicated legal counsel at the Law Office of Scott Ellerin. Jacksonville paternity lawyer Scott Ellerin has a thorough knowledge and understanding of Florida's paternity laws, and can help with your legal objective, whether that is to establish paternity or disestablish paternity.

An attorney is usually contacted for one of two reasons:

1. The mother of a child wants a man to take a DNA test to prove he is the father. If the man is determined to be the biological father, the mother is often able to get child support payments to help support the child.

2. By men who think a child is theirs, but need a DNA test to prove it. Often times the mother will not let a man spend time with the child. By proving he is the biological father, a man has grounds for asking the court for custody or visitation rights.

3. By men who want to contest their paternity. Women often claim that a man is the biological father of their child in an effort to secure child support payments. After taking a DNA test, if a man is determined NOT to be the biological father of a child, he will not be responsible for continuing to support the child.

It should be mentioned that even if man is determined not the be the biological father, the court might still require him to pay past-due child support, or even continue making child support payments. The latter is usually applied in cases where a man has acted as a father in the child's life for more than two years and, if he were to walk away and fail to make payments, it would jeopardize the child's best interests.

If any of these situations apply to you, please feel free to  contact the Law Office of Scott Ellerin today at (904) 866-4489.