Married parents who divorce usually recognize that they have to address custody issues. They may spend quite a bit of their divorce negotiating about parenting time, decision-making authority and even financial support matters.
Not all minor children have married parents. Plenty of unmarried couples also choose to raise children together. If those couples break up while their children are still minors, they may face challenging custody negotiations. Unmarried parents are often unsure of what rights they have and what steps they need to take to address child custody matters.
Marital status doesn’t diminish parental rights
Unmarried fathers, in particular, are often unsure about their rights if they end the relationship with the mother of their children. Urban legends lead people to believe that only married fathers have the right to request custody. Unmarried fathers can have a say in their children’s upbringing and a right to visitation or shared physical custody. Unmarried fathers have the same basic rights as any other parent as long as they properly assert themselves.
There may be extra steps required
While unmarried parents have to address the same issues in a breakup that married parents do when splitting custody in a divorce, the process can look a bit different. Whether or not the father has established paternity is a key consideration. Many unmarried couples establish paternity at the hospital immediately after the birth of a child. They fill out voluntary paperwork together, and the man has his name included on the child’s birth certificate.
If couples have not taken that step already, then the father may need to establish paternity to have a right to request shared custody in family court. The parents can still cooperate by filling out voluntary paternity acknowledgment paperwork. If the mother refuses to sign paternity paperwork voluntarily, then the father can ask the courts to order testing. So long as the test affirms the biological connection between the man and the child, he can then add his name to the birth certificate. Doing so gives him the same parental rights and responsibilities as any other parent.
Ideally, unmarried parents going through a breakup can work cooperatively to set shared custody terms. In some cases, they may need to go to family court and have a judge establish a reasonable allocation of parental rights and responsibilities. Either way, getting support when navigating child custody issues can help those going through a breakup preserve their most important relationships.