Legal Question in Family Law in California

If you are not married you may want to file a petition for guardianship. Please talk with an experienced family law attorney as soon as you can.

Are you in a registered partnership? That can also effect the answer as to what you are to do. Another question is if your name is on the birth certificate or not . . . that also effects the papers that you submit to the court. Another issue is the involvement of the sperm donor, and/or how the sperm was donated as to whether or not the sperm donor may have a right to be part of any dispute you may have with the mother. Under Family Code 7611(d) you will most likely have rights. But, you will need to have a truly experienced family law attorney who understands the rights of paternity/maternity as affected by your type of relationship. Good luck!

You are going to need to speak to a competent family law attorney who is familiar with paternity issues arising out of same sex couples. There are a number of recent court decisions on this matter and as you can tell from Mr. Schneider's points, there are a number of issues that will have to be evaluated.