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Complex fathers’ rights laws require individual application

As a father, you have certain rights that are due to you regardless of the relationship status between you and your child's mother. If the time comes when you have to fight for the right to be a part of your child's life, it is important that you fully understand what you should do to ensure that happens.

While some people think that the mother of the child will always win when it comes to legal parenting rights, that isn't true in Virginia. The state has taken steps to give men an equal footing when it comes to parenting. That fact, however, doesn't mean that it will be an easy battle for you to get what you feel is in your child's best interests if you and the child's mother's relationship aren't on the best of terms.

One of the first things you may need to do is to register with the Virginia Putative Father Registry if you think you have fathered a child but haven't yet been able to prove that. In some cases, it might be perceived that you don't want to be an active participant in the child's life if you don't register. That is where things can become complicated.

Because of how complex these laws are, knowing all the caveats is almost impossible unless you have had time to study the law in depth. We have given some basic information about father's rights on our website, but some cases involve a much deeper application and interpretation of the laws than what is possible without knowing the specifics of a certain case.

Source: HALE BALL MURPHY, PLC, "Fairfax Father's Rights Lawyers" Sep. 04, 2014

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