Category Archives: Paternity
What Parents Should Know About the Changes to Florida’s Paternity Laws (More Protections for Unwed Fathers)
As reported by Florida Politics, Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 775 (HB 775) into law earlier this year. The legislation—which reforms Florida Statute 742—has major implications for the determination of parentage (paternity) cases. HB 775 officially took effect in the state on July 1st, 2023—meaning it is now active law. Here, our Clearwater… Read More »
A Comprehensive Guide To Paternity Disputes And DNA Testing In Florida
Paternity is the legal foundation of a father’s rights and responsibilities in Florida. If there is a dispute over paternity, genetic testing (DNA testing) may be required to determine the child’s parentage. There are a clear set of rules, regulations, and procedures that govern the DNA testing process in paternity cases in the state…. Read More »
Is It Possible To Disestablish Paternity In Florida?
For an unmarried father to have parental rights and parental responsibilities, he must establish legal paternity for a child. This raises an important question: Can paternity be disestablished once it is already in place in Florida? The answer is ‘yes’—but only in limited circumstances. In this blog post, our Clearwater paternity lawyer explains the… Read More »
Florida Supreme Court Strikes Down Decades-Old Rule that Disadvantaged Biological Fathers
On June 28th, 2018 the Supreme Court of Florida issued a major ruling in a key family law case. In Treneka Simmonds v. Connor Perkins, Florida’s highest court struck down a decades-old legal rule that severely disadvantaged biological fathers by putting a child’s ‘legitimacy’ ahead of a father’s parental rights. This is an important… Read More »
How to Establish Paternity in Florida
A father will not be able to fully assert his parental rights unless he can establish legal paternity for his child. Likewise, a mother will not be able to collect the child support that is rightfully owed to her unless she can establish that the man in question is the legal father of the… Read More »
