Fathers’ Rights

A child deserves the best his/her parents can offer, including the love and support of both parents. If you are not married to the mother of your child, there are steps you can take to become a legal father. When a child is born to unmarried parents, the father’s parentage can be established by:

• Signing the Recognition of Parentage; by doing so, both parents are saying that both parents agree that the man is the biological father of the child and that they both want him to be the child’s legal father
• Either one or both parents can ask the court to enter an order finding that the man is the legal father of the child. This will establish both rights and responsibilities for the father. These rights and responsibilities may include scheduled parenting time as well as child support paid by the non-custodial parent.
• The parents can marry after the child is born and sign an affidavit that is filed with the Office of the State Registrar.

Every child has a biological father, but not all children have legal fathers. A legal father is the man who the law recognizes as the father of the child. When married couples have a child, the law automatically recognizes the husband as the child’s legal father and parentage does not need to be established. But if the child’s mother is not married at the time of the child’s birth, the child does not automatically have a legal father.

The first way to elevate a father’s status in the eyes of the law is for the child’s father and mother to sign a Recognition of Parentage, which is a document that establishes the legal relationship between a father and his child when the father is not married to the child’s mother. Signing the Recognition of Parentage is an easy and inexpensive alternative to having the court order the establishment of a legal father. Both parents must sign this form to make the man the legal father of the said child. A Recognition of Parentage should not be signed if either the child’s mother or potential father is unsure if he is the father of the child. Never be pressured into signing the Recognition of Parentage!

What are some of the advantages for fathers who sign the Recognition of Parentage?

• It helps fathers stay involved in their child’s life as the child grows up
• It gives fathers the right to ask the court for visitation and custody
• It allows for a father to put his child(ren) on his insurance plans to cover the child’s heath care needs
• Gives the father the right to be notified of any adoption proceedings
• Allows a father’s name to appear on the child’s birth certificate

What are some of the disadvantages to signing the Recognition of Parentage?
A father gives up the right to:

• Ask for a blood or DNA test to prove whether or not he is the biological father of the child
• Have an attorney represent him
• Have a trial to determine whether or not he is the biological father of the child

Sometimes parents want proof that a particular man is the biological father of a child before he is named as a legal father to the child. In these cases a mother or father can request genetic testing be done to establish paternity. Genetic testing involves either blood or swab (from the inside of the cheek) collections from the mother, potential father, and the child. Test results can be received anytime between a few days and a few weeks after the samples are drawn. Genetic testing can show that a man is or is not the biological father of the child with greater than 99% probability.

DNA Testing

What if one or both of the child’s parents are minors?

If either of the child’s parents are under 18 years of age and the decision is made to sign the Recognition of Parentage, the form will only presume parentage. If there is no court order, within six months after the youngest parent turns 18, to withdraw or use the Recognition of Parentage as evidence in a court action to establish parentage, the Recognition of Parentage becomes the same as a court order determining the legal status of the father.

MN Judicial Branch
MN Dept of Health

What is the purpose of the Minnesota Fathers’ Adoption Registry (FAR)?

The Minnesota Father’s Adoption Registry provides a means by which a father can register to protect his rights to be notified of his child’s pending or future adoption. The registry is for potential fathers who have not established paternity and who are not married to the mother of their child. The potential father must register no later than 30 days after the birth of the child. Neither a lack of knowledge of the registry or the pregnancy, nor being separated from the child’s mother are considered acceptable reasons for failure to register.

Fathers’ Adoption Registry (FAR)