Who's the Father?

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? Oklahoma

My 17 year old nephew's 16 year old girlfriend has recently become pregnant with what she says is his child. She has admitted to others that the child could be someone else's.

He, of course, is love struck and is willing to accept responsibility for the child without paternity testing. They don't have plans to marry right now, but do have plans to live together. He will be 18 in a couple of months.

I'm sure that everyone who reads this post will agree with me, that the "new" will wear off all too soon and he will at some point undoubtedly want to know for sure if this child is his, either because he will be paying child support or because he may want custody. Call me a pessimist, but how many of these relationships do you ever hear about lasting?

My questions are:

If he acknowledges this child as his by allowing his name to be put on the birth certificate as the father, what are his rights later to question paternity?

If his name is not on the birth certificate, but he lives with her openly and acknowledges that the child is his, will he be liable for child support later?

When he turns 18, will she have grounds to charge him with statuatory rape if she gets upset with him?

If he chooses not to request paternity testing, do his parents have any right to request them even though he will be 18 when the child is born?

Thanks for your help.

Tell your son to read the following (after pulling his head out of his Jockeys)
Oklahoma Statutes:

§56-238.6B.
12. That if the mother and father have voluntarily signed an
acknowledgment of paternity pursuant to Section 1-311.3 of Title 63 of
the Oklahoma Statutes, the signed voluntary acknowledgment of
paternity is considered a legal finding of paternity, subject to the
right of any signatory to rescind the acknowledgment within the
earlier of:

a. sixty (60) days, or

b. the date of an administrative or judicial proceeding relating to
the child, including but not limited to a proceeding to establish a
support order, in which the signatory is a party.

After the sixty-day period referred to in subparagraph a of this
paragraph, a signed voluntary acknowledgment of paternity may be
challenged in court only on the basis of fraud, duress, or material
mistake of fact, with the burden of proof upon the challenger. The
legal responsibilities, including but not limited to child support
obligations, of any signatory arising from the acknowledgment may not
be suspended during the challenge, except for good cause shown.

This paragraph shall not be interpreted to authorize the rescission of
an acknowledgement of paternity if such rescission would be prohibited
under applicable federal law.

Thanks!

That answers the first 2 questions.

Any idea on the next 2?

When he turns 18, will she have grounds to charge him with statuatory rape if she gets upset with him?

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No.

If he chooses not to request paternity testing, do his parents have any right to request them even though he will be 18 when the child is born?

Click to expand...

No.

oklagirl said:

She has admitted to others that the child could be someone else's.

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My response:

I wholeheartedly agree with our concerned writer. When her nephew wakes up one morning, after the "honeymoon" is over, and says to himself, "My gosh, at only 16 years old, this chick is a slut, tramp and skank. What the hell am I doing with her?", that's when the fun and trouble begins.

By the way, writer . . . who, in this situation, lives in the trailer?

IAAL

No trailer trash involved although you couldn't tell it by the circumstances.

Drugs, however, tend to plunge even the middle class into stupidity.

And having a mother who thinks that her 16 year old daughter being pregnant is a cause for celebration doesn't help the situation. Perhaps she's trying to shove her teenage problem into someone else's lap???

Thanks for the help. I got all the answers I expected, but not the ones I foolishly wanted.

oklagirl said:

No trailer trash involved although you couldn't tell it by the circumstances.

Click to expand...

My response:

Okay, mountain log cabin.

Oklahoma Hillbillies - - - gotta love 'em!

IAAL

"And having a mother who thinks that her 16 year old daughter being pregnant is a cause for celebration doesn't help the situation. Perhaps she's trying to shove her teenage problem into someone else's lap???"

Yes, I've seen that kind of idiocy as well, and I just shake my head and wonder WHAT is this kid's mother THINKING? MY friend has a step-daughter whose mom did just that after her daughter slept around enough to get herself pregnant (my friend would come home from work and find her "hosting" boys in the bedroom. They were so excited and happy about planning a baby shower- nobody was thinking of what was best for THE BABY, because this 16 year old was an ignorant, self-centered, ambitious-less loser who had no businesss even THINKING about having kids at this point in her life because she'd probably end up on welfare and partying whenever she could AND neglecting the baby - not to mention ruining the future of the guy-du-jour who actually was planning to go off to college and make something of himself. In friend's evil-stepdaughter's case, she miscarried.

Oakgirl, go get your nephew and sit his ass in front of this computer. He needs a 'come to Jesus' before he destroys his and the child's life.

Because, if the child is not his, eventually it will come out. Then not only will he have to fight for any rights that he MAY have, he will lose this child to the bio-father. AND every penny he has paid towards support (when they divorce) is lost.

Even with an acknowledgement of paternity, if at a later date he is found NOT to be the father, he could lose everything.