Establishing the paternity of a child is crucial, particularly when it comes to decisions related to child custody, visitation, and child support payments. There are various ways to establish the paternity of a child in Arizona, some of which are voluntary and some involving the court system.
Harper Easterling is a highly accomplished family law firm in Arizona. With years of experience, our family lawyers have helped people throughout Maricopa County and the surrounding areas:
For all your Arizona family law matters, turn to Harper Easterling.
Under Arizona law, an unmarried father must establish paternity to gain legal decision-making rights, parenting time, or child custody.
While married couples have a presumption of paternity, unmarried parents do not. Unmarried fathers must fight to gain any parental rights. Without established paternity, a mother can make unilateral decisions about:
However, an unmarried father can gain the same parental rights as if he and the mother were married.
Child support orders usually follow the establishment of paternity in Arizona. Whether you are a parent pursuing legal parental rights or a parent seeking support, paternity is required to establish a child support order.
The Arizona Department of Economic Security (AZ DES) can assist families in furtherance of financial needs through a number of services, including collecting and distributing child support:
Married and unmarried fathers have a few options to establish paternity in Arizona. Paternity is crucial for a biological father to gain parental rights and establish a child’s right to financial support.
Depending on the circumstances of the child’s birth:
If the child’s biological father denies paternity, a mother can seek a court order. An Arizona paternity attorney can assist in properly initiating proceedings in family court.
A presumption of paternity refers to a man who is assumed to be the biological father of a child. Families come in all shapes and sizes. Couples may start a family long before considering marriage. Other couples choose never to marry. When children are born, the relationship status of a couple can present numerous legal issues. Who is named on the birth certificate and signed can help avoid a plethora of legal matters.
Presumption of paternity can be established at the child’s birth:
In addition, unmarried parents can confirm paternity by signing a Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity Form.
A Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity form states who is the child’s biological father and is signed by both parents. The form is a legal document that must be notarized and filed with the appropriate agencies to be valid, including:
An experienced family law attorney will stress the importance of a voluntary acknowledgment form and recommend a DNA test to confirm the father of a child. Paternity can be a highly sensitive subject, especially if there are doubts. At Harper Easterling, our paternity attorneys will handle your case with respect and dignity.
Parents wishing to establish paternity in Arizona may seek a court order. With the help of an experienced paternity lawyer, parents can petition the court for genetic testing. To obtain an order for a DNA test, a petition to establish paternity must be filed. Once genetic testing is completed and paternity proven, the court will enter an order of paternity including revising the child’s birth certificate.
An informal parenting agreement is popular among unmarried parents until they realize it will not hold in court.
Co-parenting is one of the most difficult and thankless jobs in the world. In an age where families no longer follow the traditional route, informal parenting agreements have become a popular solution to everyday family matters.
However, an informal parenting agreement is like wrapping a broken arm in an ACE bandage. Should one or both parents disagree on an issue with their child, there is no legal way of enforcing the agreement.
Parents can disagree or suddenly change their minds about child support, visitation rights, child custody, or any other matter. If paternity and custody are not established, the legal decision-making will be done by the mother of the child.
Court-ordered parenting plans and scheduled parenting time put the needs of the child first.
An Arizona divorce lawyer can resolve a number of issues in family court. By establishing a parenting plan, our law office can ensure parenting time is enforceable.
Choosing an Arizona family law attorney is personal. The attorney-client relationship is critical to the success of your case. You deserve a paternity lawyer who:
Whether you are an unmarried parent, involved in an Arizona divorce or legal separation, or a married parent seeking a paternity test, Harper Easterling is here.
We are dedicated to providing solutions to a wide range of paternity matters. We will work tirelessly to establish a paternity and all of the associated rights. In addition, our paternity lawyer will ensure your child receives the child support they are owed.
When you need strategic solutions to parenting plans, paternity matters, and other family law matters, call Attorney Stephanie Harper Easterling to discuss your case. Our law firm is honored to serve families in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa, Chandler, Glendale, Gilbert, and Tempe.
Steph handled a dissolution with children for my daughter. It was such a stressful time for my daughter along with her dad and I. Steph and her staff were extremely professional, knowledgeable and explained each phase along the way. Steph and her staff were also very understanding with the emotional side of a case like this. They were kind and never judge mental. I would highly recommend Steph and her staff for any family law case.
When I was looking for an attorney to begin the divorce process (dissolution of marriage with children), Steph came highly recommended from a close friend. After meeting with her, I completely understood why! Steph is extremely knowledgeable, was able to answer ALL my questions and help ease my anxieties. She was able to make this difficult chapter go as smooth as possible. Steph and her team were quick to respond to any questions and needs and never left me with unanswered questions or concerns. I would recommend Steph to anyone in need of a family law attorney!
When you want to have your case handled by a professional, receive the best advice in your interest, and someone who is a good listener, you should HIRE Steph Easterling and her team as your legal representation and advisors. Having one of the BEST of the BEST is always important but especially in regard to Family Law and having someone fighting for YOUR best interests.
Steph and her team are great! I was nervous because I have never done anything like this before. She explained everything to me so I understood it. Her staff is super nice. I like how they kept me up to date on my case. I would definitely recommend to everyone with any family law case.
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I am very thankful for the services I received from Stephanie Harper Easterling. She coached and guided me at the end of my very complicated long divorce case when I was scared, lost, and had no idea what I was doing. I had limited funds to hire an attorney, but I was able to use limited scope services and hired Stephanie for only what I was unsure about while representing myself in my divorce case. Stephanie was extremely prompt in getting back to every time I had a question for her and she assisted me with my pretrial statement; saving me money as I completed it at the best of my knowledge and had her edit and modify it as needed. When I was unsure of something and needed more information she provided what I needed to help me understand. Thanks to Stephanies professional, prompt, and excellent service, the judge granted every exhibit I submitted and I was very very happy with the end results of my divorce case. I could not have done it without the help of Stephanie!
We worked with Stephanie on the creation of a prenup agreement. She came as a recommendation to us, and we were incredibly pleased with both the final product and the ease of working with her. We would definitely use her again.
Stephanie is certainly a 5-star attorney. I am most impressed with her pragmatic and common sense approach to managing her client’s/my case issues. She did not waste my time with making idol promises nor was she arrogantly dismissive of my concerns. She does however provide me with the tools and understanding of why a tactic(s) may or may not work. I appreciate her creativity, humility, understanding of the law and her straight forward approach to working with me and my family.
I was ordered to pay my exwife spousal maintenance for an indefinite time. When my exwife (who never worked) was approaching her 62nd birthday I contacted her and requested that she should consider putting in paperwork to start receiving Social Security. My exwife was also eligible to receive half of my pension. With the pension and the Social Security she would be receiving more than I was giving her via spousal maintenance. My hope was with that in place I could stop paying her the spousal maintenance and start planning better for my retirement. She said no. I then hired Stephanie. With her help we were able to convince the judge to require my exwife to do as I had requested. Stephanie was also able to recover some of my attorney fees from my exwife. Stephanie was easy to work with. Her paralegal was also a joy to work with. We did a lot of our communcating through email. I always got very timely responses.
Stephanie was not the first lawyer assigned to my case but she turned out to be a real gem. I was feeling a bit passed around, but as time went on, realized that the lawyers and paralegals at this firm all have each other’s backs and I was in good hands all along. When the going got tough and the opposition was coming on strong ,being very rude and using scare tactics, Stephanie did not budge or flinch and assured me the law was on our side, which gave me the strength not to buckle. She listened to exactly what I wanted and when she wrote our proposals or responses they were precise, to the point and impressive. We successfully settled out of court for more than I expected and I attribute this to Stephanie’s demeanor, her team, and ability not to swayed by bullying tactics. Everyone at this firm is very professional and on top of their game. She is working with a friend of mine right now and he is as equally impressed.
I would tell all of my friends and family about Stephanie for their legal matters and trust that they are in good hands. She is friendly as well as knowledgable and made me feel like she truly understands what I am going through. She has a kind approach that didn’t make me feel intimidated as a first time client but also a firmness that gave me assurance that she will fight for my rights. Thank you for all of your help Stephanie 🙂
Stephanie was an excellent attorney and I would recommend her to anyone. She was very logical, rational, and supportive of my situation. She was personable and very easy-going, knowing that I was dealing with so much stress through all of this. Even though I overwhelmed her with paperwork because my case on my ex was so huge she was able to organize our case and make sure we presented the proper facts relevant to the case without having to “smear” her in court. She was always concerned with what was in my best interest and the best interest of my daughter. She will be my attorney of record for the rest of my daughter’s youth.
