Can a Mother Contest a Father's Petition to Legitimate in Georgia?

Legitimation in Georgia is a legal proceeding to lawfully give a biological father legal rights to request parenting time, custody and visitation, and to inherit from the child should something tragic occur. A client often asks me: If the biological father of my child files to become the legal father (through a process known in Georgia as legitimation) is there any way I can stop or contest it? While the answer is generally, "no," each case must be evaluated on its own unique footing. If the father has not made efforts to involve himself in the child's life for a period of a year or more despite genuine opportunity to do so, then an argument can be made that the father has 'abandoned his opportunity interest' to be a part of the child's life. As the length of time that dad has been totally detached increases, so does the degree of dad's 'abandonment.' If this detachment is accompanied by a failure to pay child support (under court order or voluntarily), then judges in Georgia are receptive to denying legitimation. [Note that in Georgia, issues of legitimation, and custody issues in general, are always decided by a judge alone, not a jury.]

On the other hand, judges in Georgia are growing more and more eager to preserve a father's rights to have a relationship with his child and also show rising consideration for the importance to the child itself of having both parents involved in the child's life. A child's age is a factor that is considered as well in a legitimation case: fathers of younger children that can still benefit from establishing a bond with their father is more likely prevail in a contested legitimation action. I have represented a number of fathers who, despite possible parental apathy in the past, seem honestly interested in becoming a part of their child's lives.

Except in obvious cases of the father's abandonment, where the likelihood that introducing the biological father into the family equation will do more harm than good within a child's solidified root system and family structure, the smartest plan for a mom hesitant to agree to legitimation is to use the legitimation process to secure favorable parenting terms: terms that protect the child and ensure that the father genuinely plays a constructive role for the child. If the father winds up choosing not to exercise his allotted time with the child (or proves himself incapable or unwilling to deal with the hard task of day-to-day parenting), the mother can later seek a court order to modify the terms of the parenting plan set-up at the time of the legitimation (and say: 'see, I told you so").

Child support will also be set in a legitimation action, so I always tell my client-mothers to be prepared for the income and expense calculations required to complete and present Georgia Child Support Worksheets. Fathers are required to pay child support regardless of whether they have legitimated the child. Child support issues in and of themselves require a smart parent to retain an attorney.

Whether a mother chooses to fight legitimation or instead focus on establishing the right parenting plan that defines custody terms and a visitation schedule, it is essential that she contact an experienced Lawrenceville divorce lawyer to sort through and guide her through the many tiers of legitimation case, and to ultimately present a persuasive case to the opposing attorney and judge, whether the case settles or goes to trial. As principal attorney with the Fox Firm, P.C. located in Lawrenceville (Gwinnett County), Georgia, I have successfully handled dozens of legitimation cases from both sides of the mother-father equation and enjoy helping parents who want the best for their children.