Legal Question in Family Law in New York

I live in NY state, married in 2002, not living together since 2005 but no legal separation, husband has been unwilling to divorce. I am now 4 months pregnant with my ex boyfriends baby. He basically took off & abandoned me, I found out from his other ex that he was charged with "forcible touching" of her preteen daughter.

I know my husband will want to go to court so he does not have to be claimed as the father

I'm not sure if my ex will show up 6 months from now to sign paternity

I actually have more than one question:

1- Can I give the baby my maiden name?, as hopefully one day I will finally get divorced & it will save the trouble of changing it from my married name and it is also not his baby

2-How can I find out if my ex was actually charged with "forcible touching"?

3-If he doesn't sign paternity and I bring him to court & do DNA tests proving he is the father, what are the chances of getting full custody & keeping him from the baby if he does have a charge of "forcible touching"?

4-or would it be more advisable to not force the issue of paternity as he would have no rights to see the child compared to taking the chance of the judge letting him have visitation even though he has that charge?

thank you


Asked on 8/07/11, 1:26 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Joel Salinger Law Office of Joel R. Salinger

You have many questions that have many answers. I will try to answer them individually.

First, Although it is a presumption that the father of your baby is your husband, you are not required to place the father's name on the birth certificate and you do not have to acknowledge paternity. That being said, the real father can bring an action in Family Court for paternity and you could be forced to acknowledge it at that time through a paternity test.

Second, you can check the New York State sex offender registry. It will only appear if he was convicted, not only charged. Other than that, check the local newspaper index for articles. Many of these cases are reported in the media.

Third, there are benefits to forcing the father to acknowledge paternity. Child support and medical assistance can be a benefit. If you truly do not want this person in the child's life then you can start by not even informing them of the pregnancy and keeping his name off of the birth certificate. You can give the child your maiden name.

Fourth, if he knows and wishes to see and have a relationship with the child, he will have the right. A court will order visitation. The flip side is that you will be eligible for child support and the other benefits.

If you need additional information or wish to have a free telephone consultation you can call my office at 631-486-7800.

Joel R. Salinger

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Answered on 8/07/11, 2:14 pm


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