PATERNITY

                  STATUTORY PROVISIONS

PARENTAGE ACT.  Paternity is governed by the Illinois Parentage Act of 1984.  
This act equally extends the parent and child relationship to every child and
every parent, both mother and father, regardless of the marital status of the
parents.

Presumption of Paternity.  A man is presumed to be the natural father of a child
if:

  • he and the natural mother of the child are or have been married to each
    other and the child is born or conceived during such marriage

  • after the child's birth, he and the natural mother marry and he is named
    as the father, with his written consent, on the child's birth certificate

  • he and the natural mother signed a voluntary acknowledgment of
    paternity (VAP)

  • if the natural father is someone other than the presumed father under the
    Illinois Parentage Act, an acknowledgment of paternity is signed, and, if
    the natural father is someone other than one presumed to be the father,
    then a acknowledgment of paternity must be signed by the natural father
    as well as a denial of paternity is signed by the presumed father

Voluntary Acknowledge of Paternity (VAP).  Often abbreviated to VAP, this form
is used to allow a man to be placed on the birth certificate of a child when the
man is not married to the natural mother, by the Department of Health and
Family Services (formally Public Aid) to address paternity without the formality of
the courtroom., and by either parent to establish paternity prior to proceeding
with a court case.

ILLINOIS MARRIAGE AND DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE ACT.  Section 16 of the
Parentage Act makes all provisions of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
Marriage Act (IMDMA) applicable to a paternity case once paternity has been
established.  Thus the statutory provisions determining custody, visitation, and
financial obligations are the same whether the parents of the child were married
or not married when the child was conceived and born.


         REASONS TO ESTABLISH PATERNITY

Without an order from the court setting a specific visitation schedule:

  • A Father may not be allowed to have any visitation with the child

  • A Mother may not be able to retrieve the child from the father

VISITATION COURT ORDER.  Until paternity has been established, there is no
set visitation schedule which can result in considerable difficulty for both
parents.  In many situations, the father will be given no legal rights to visitation
until a court order is entered setting forth a specific visitation schedule.  In other
situations, if the father fails to return the child after visitation, the mother may
have no ability to have the child returned without a court order.  Therefore, it is
imperative to establish paternity as soon as the child is born rather than waiting
until a problem develops.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT.  The parent given visitation will not be responsible for
financially supporting the child until paternity is established.  Unless the
Department of Health and Family Services (formerly Public Aid) is involved, a
parent can only receive financial support dating back to the date the court case
was filed.  The longer the parent waits to file the court case, the longer the
parent will be solely responsible for supporting the child financially.  The
financial support available is exactly the same as if the parents were married
and is defined by the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.


   PROCEDURE TO ESTABLISH PATERNITY

ESTABLISHING PATERNITY.  Paternity is established through the following
means:

  • Proof the mother giving birth to the child

  • Proof of Adoption or records established pursuant to Section 16 of the
    Vital Records Act

  • Administrative Determination by the Department of Health Care and
    Family Services (formerly Public Aid) in accordance with Section 10/17.7
    of the Illinois Public Aid Code

  • Court procedure pursuant to the Illinois Parentage Act of 1984

ADMINISTRATIVE DETERMINATION BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
FAMILY SERVICES (formerly Public Aid).  A parent can use the assistance of
"Public Aid" to establish paternity and the financial obligations of the non-
custodial parent (parent with visitation).  The "Public Aid" attorney does not
represent either the mother or the father, but rather represents the department in
assuring that the child support payments are made and that health insurance is
provided for the child.  Therefore, these attorneys do not handle custody or
visitation issues which often times results in visitation issue never being
resolved or even addressed.  "Public Aid" places the responsibility of getting a
visitation schedule entered on the parents.  That is why many attorneys work in
conjunction with the "Public Aid" attorneys to obtain the best results for their
clients.

Powers of the Department of Health and Family Services (Public Aid).  "Public
Aid" has been given the ability to appear before judges in every county in Illinois
and assess child support against "responsible relatives" in accordance with
section 505 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.  The support
can be dated to the date the child was born.  Public Aid enforces Section 505.2
of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage requiring a person paying
child support to provide health insurance for the child as an additional
requirement of child support.  Public Aid can assess the cost of the birth of the
child against the person paying child support if the public assistance paid for
the cost of the birth.  Public Aid can even assess maintenance (formerly called
alimony) against a "responsible relative" in accordance with section 504 of the
Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.  


COURT PROCEDURE PURSUANT TO THE ILLINOIS PARENTAGE ACT OF 1984.  
The first step in initiating a paternity action is to file the complaint to declare the
existing of a parent and child relationship.  The complaint must be filed in the
proper state and county.  The father must be given notice pursuant to the
requirements of section 9.1 of the act.  A person named in a paternity action as
the father of a child has the right to genetic testing to determine inherited
characteristics in accordance with section 11 of the Parentage Act.  Once
paternity has been established under the Act, the Court can entertain issues of
visitation/custody, child support, and other financial issues under the Illinois
Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.  

After a Final Order is entered in the Paternity Case.  Enforcement and
modification of court orders entered in a paternity case is the same as if the
orders were entered in a divorce.  The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
Marriage Act governs modification and enforcement of all court orders.

Intervention of the Department of Health and Family Services (formerly Public
Aid).  If the custodial parent is receiving benefits from Public Aid, the Department
can intervene into the paternity case (as well as a divorce case) to enforce the
payment of child support by the non-custodial parent (parent receiving
visitation).  Public Aid attorneys represent the Department in assuring the
payment of child support.  Although these services are "free" the Department
can take some time to initiate the proceedings.  Once Public Aid is involved in a
case, Public Aid must always be given notice of changes to child support and
custody.  Public Aid will also conduct a payment history of the child support
payments.
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