A baby born to unwed parents does not have a legal father under Texas Law.  In order to exercise your rights as a father, including visitation and possession, a man must be a child’s legal father.  A common misconception is that if your name is on the birth certificate you are a legal father.  If you are not married to the mother, simply putting your name on the birth certificate of your child is not enough to make you the “legal” father and you cannot enforce your rights to the child.

The process to become a legal father is a simple one. If the biological father and the mother agree, they can both sign an “Acknowledgement of Paternity” which is filed with the Bureau of Vital Statistics.  Once paternity has been established, your name will be placed on the birth certificate, and the Court may order you to pay child support and grant you visitation or possession rights with your child.

TEXAS FAMILY LAW §160.301.   ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF PATERNITY

The mother of a child and a man claiming to be the biological father of the child may sign an acknowledgement of paternity with the intent to establish the man’s paternity.

TEXAS FAMILY LAW §160.302.   EXECUTION OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF PATERNITY

An acknowledgement of paternity must:

  1. Be in a record;

  2. Be signed, or otherwise authenticated, under penalty of perjury by the mother and the man seeking to establish paternity;

  3. State that the child whose paternity is being acknowledged:

    1. Does not have a presumed father or has a presumed father whose full name is stated;

    2. Does not have another acknowledged or adjudicated father.

  4. State whether there has been genetic testing and, if so, that the acknowledging man’s claim of paternity is consistent with the results of the testing;

  5. State that the signatories understand that the acknowledgement is the equivalent of a judicial adjudication of the paternity of the child and that a challenge to the acknowledgement is permitted only under limited circumstances.

An acknowledgement of paternity is void if it:

  1. States that another man is a presumed father of the child, unless a denial of paternity signed or otherwise authenticated by the presumed father is filed with the bureau of vital statistics;

  2. States that another man is an acknowledged or adjudicated father of the child; or

  3. Falsely denies the existence of a presumed, acknowledged, or adjudicated father of the child.

  4. A presumed father may sign or otherwise authenticate an acknowledgement of paternity.