Legal Question in Family Law in California

You cannot. The right to parentage belongs to the child. Neither the mother nor the father can give up the rights, or the responsibility, for a naturally conceived child. The child is also entitled to support from both biological parents, so you should contact the Department of Child Support services as soon as the child is born.

Biological parental status is not the same as legal parental status. A presumption of legal parental status only exists in the following situations:

1. You were married to the father when the child was born.

2. Both you and the father signed a Voluntary Declaration of parental rights.

3. A court has entered a judgment of paternity.

So long as none of the above criterion is met, then the bio father is not the legal father. He has no rights to custody or visitation, and you need to do nothing. If, however, you seek public assistance, you will be asked who the bio father is and then CSS will file a court action to establish legal parental status. Furthermore, should you ever desire child support from the father, you will have to get a judgment establishing paternity first, but you can do this at any time, up until the child is an adult.

I do not recommend you do this, but I have heard about mothers claiming they do not know who the bio father is when seeking public assistance, and still qualifying for assistance. Likewise, I have heard of mothers telling the father that unless he gives her so much money per month, CSS will be going after him for more. This way the mother gets both public assistance and some support from the father. However, if you do take this route, you could possibly be prosecuted for fraud if you get caught.