Legal Question in Family Law in Washington

Yes and no. Yes, you do as opposed to anyone else in the world, except for the other biological parent. If the other biological parent had your son, say for a visit, and refused to return him, you would need a court order to get him back. I have no doubt you could secure it, especially if you have had him from birth to 11, but you would have to go through a lot of trouble in order to make that happen.

This is why I would recommend to anyone who has a child and is not married, to get custody orders put into place as quickly as possible so as to avoid any problems later on that may arise if there is a dispute over who should have the child. It is as much for each parent's protection as it is for the child's.

I would also add that it is a good idea to have custody orders in place in the event you wish to obtain a passport for your son or if he wishes to travel overland over, say the Canadian border, while under the age of 16 when he does not necessarily need a passport. If traveling with a minor, you may be stopped and asked to show proof that you have permission from the other biological parent to transport the child out of the United States. If you have no court order, no letter, or other proof that you have sole custody of the child, that could lead to a very long day for you, to say the least.

If there is no known biological father (it's hard not to know who the biological mother is) and by this I mean there is nobody on the child's birth certificate, then you are fine. Carry that document with you in lieu of a letter of permission from the other biological parent, and in lieu of the need for custody orders.