Legal Representation in Paternity Conflicts

When a baby is born to parents who are not married, parental rights must be established. At the Law Office of Christopher Haaff in Crystal Lake, Illinois, we have handled many complex paternity cases where a mother has denied the purported father his parental rights. We have also handled cases in which the father has denied paternity. An experienced family law attorney can help you work through these complicated issues.

Establishing Paternity

When a married woman gives birth, the presumption is that her husband is the father. If an unmarried woman has a baby, there is a question as to the paternity. DNA testing has taken the guesswork out of determining a child's father, and has provided a fast and scientific solution to determine the identity of a baby's biological father.

Motivations for a Paternity Test

An unmarried mother may seek a paternity test to identify the biological father and secure financial support to raise the child. She may allege that the individual she is claiming as the father is the only man she has ever been with intimately. A paternity test may be necessary if the man she names as the father denies that he has a biological link to the child. If, in the paternity action, paternity is affirmed, child support liability can then be established based upon the Illinois child support guidelines.

At the Law Office of Christopher Haaff, we also represent fathers who wish to establish a relationship with the child and obtain parental rights. A father who is claiming parentage will have a paternity test done in order to secure rights to pursue child custody and/or visitation.

Contact Us

If paternity is successfully established, we will help our clients seek child custody and visitation or child support. For more information about paternity actions in Illinois, or to schedule an appointment to discuss establishing paternity or securing legal custody, please contact a Crystal Lake paternity lawyer.