Wife pregnant when divorce was final. Didn't know

[blueeyes76]

i got a divorce at the first of this year in tennessee. my wife was pregnant and we didn't know. now she says she went and told "them" and that our divorce is null. could this be true?

 

[lawrat]

I have no clue what you just said.


____________________________________________________________
I am a law school graduate. What I offer is mere information, not to be construed as forming an attorney client relationship.

 

[blueeyes76]

Sorry about that. My wife and I were divorced at the first of this year. The divorce was final. We then discovered that she was pregnant while the divorce was going through and she says that she went and reported it to someone, I do not know who and that is why I said "them". Anyway she says that now the divorce is not legal. That it is null and void because she was pregnant at the time it was finalized. This any better?

 

[lawrat]

no offense, but your wife sounds very dumb. divorce and getting pregnant having nothing to do with each other.

 

[blueeyes76]

Thank you thank you thank you!!!!

 

[brighteyes]

Divorce & Pregnancy

Blueeyes,

Please clarify something for me. Is your ex-wife stating this pregnancy is your child? If the divorce was really annulled, I would think the court would notify you of this action. I don't know how TN law is, but in MO there is waiting period before the judge signs the decree. A pregnancy would show up during that time. Pregnancy is a major issue during the hearing. It would be a reason to annull the divorce if she says it is your child. The judge always ask if the spouse is pregnant before they sign the divorce decree.

 

[blueeyes76]

Yes she is saying this baby is mine. She would have only been about a month along when the divorce was final and thats why we didn't know.

 

[brighteyes]

I would contact the courthouse and see what the status is on the divorce. They should be able to tell you. I would think the judge would have another hearing with both parties there. The judge has to determine and issue an order for responsibility of medical, living, and misc. expenses.

This might seem personal. Did you split on good terms? How are you going to handle your ex with a baby on the way? Does it change your feelings for her? Could this be a sign to try and reconcile? Sometimes, I think things happen for a reason. It might be something to think about.

 

[blueeyes76]

No we didn't split on good terms. She is a mean, spiteful and vindictive person. I have a son with her now and he is five years old. She won't let me see him and she says that I'm not going to be able to see the baby that is on the way either. I only see my son when my father-in-law gets him. He lets me come to his house and pick him up. She found out about that this past weekend though and says that it won't happen again. She called me a couple of days ago and asked for $250 for an attorney she hired to get a divorce. I don't understand that though since we were divorced and she is the one that went and told that she was pregnant so that the other one would become null. (Whether that is true or not I've still yet to find out) I will do as you suggested and call the courthouse Monday. I talked to the attorney that did the original divorce but he wouldn't tell me anything on the phone. He says I have to come up there to talk to him so I have an appointment with him Monday afternoon. He could have at least told me if she was full of it or not on the phone I would think. Don't you?

 

[Grandma B]

Do you have court ordered visitation for your child? Unless you've done something VERY wrong, she cannot keep you from seeing the child.

 

[brighteyes]

Your lawyer isn't going to tell you anything without receiving a retainer fee. It's obvious he is all about $. I wouldn't give the ex a dime for her lawyer. It was her responsibity to know whether she was pregnant or not. She knew that would be a question asked in court. She could of done a pregnancy test prior to going to court. They have test know that will tell you accurate results in 2-3 days after conception. If nothing else she could of had a blood test done.

Didn't your divorce stipulate visitation with your 5 year old? Was it specific as to when you had visitation? If you have a courtorder stating this you can hold her in contempt of court. She has to give you visitation. My brother had this problem. He took his divorce papers with him and went to the police station. They went with him to pick his child up. The cop told his ex to hand the child over or she was going to jail. You might need to try this approach. It seems drastic, but you have the right to see your child. There will also be a police report made that you can use in court. Make sure you keep records of everything. Especially, ever attempt made for visitation and was denied. Keep us posted on your situation.

 

[blueeyes76]

Yes I have court order visitation but I never knew I could get the police to go with me to pick him up. I figured I'd have to get an attorney and take her back to court for that. I'll try that though and I'm also going to find out from the courthouse the status of the divorce before I go see my attorney. I kinda thought he was all about the money too. Thanks everyone for your thoughts. I really appreciate your time and advice

 

[Ginger]

Just some advice. You are allowed to fire your attorney. For my initial divorce I had 2, fired the first one. Then for subsequent modification I had 1 which I fired and have now hired another. He is totally awesome.

Second, when the baby is born do not sign birth certificate, get a dna test. You say in your post she is vindictive, this may or may NOT be your child. Protect yourself. Good luck.

 

[mpassionata]

Signing the Birth certificate

The reply you got from Mag-63 is right on the money. There is no law that states you have to sign the birth certificate just because you use to be married to the mother. Ask for a DNA test. It is a reasonable request.

 

[blueeyes76]

Well I talked to the County clerk at the courthouse and she more or less said what LawRat said, that my EX-wife is full of it. I cancelled my appointment with my attorney after that. I still haven't gotten to see my son again since she found out that her dad was letting me get him from his house but I'm working on that too.