Lawyer dad won’t accept paternity

Dear Mrs Macaulay,

I am the mother of a 4 1/2-year-old son whose father abandoned him from birth. He works in the same commercial district as I do and has never accepted paternity of the child. I would like to file for sole custody. So that you know upfront, he is an attorney. I think it is important to state this as all the other attorneys I approached seem not to want to take it on when they discover his profession.

All fathers are equally responsible for their children and for ensuring that they enjoy all the fundamental constitutional and human rights to which they are entitled. A father who seeks to and has in fact turned his back on his paternal obligations can by an order of either the Supreme Court or the Family Court be made to honour his obligations or suffer the consequences if he breaches the orders made.

So, dear mother, it does not matter whether the putative father is an attorney-at-law or not, he is just like any father alleged to have abandoned his child and his obligations and rights as a father. It is very unfortunate and shameful that attorneys you say you approached about the matter did not act for your child through you, when they discovered that he was of the same profession. Such refusals go counter to our obligations to uphold the dignity of our profession, and in fact we have an obligation under our rules of conduct to file a report about any members of the profession who we know are bringing the profession into disrepute by their conduct.

It is true that one would not be happy to do this, but it is not an acceptable reason to refuse to act in the matter. In such circumstances, the attorney approached by the aggrieved party to act against a colleague often, with full disclose to you, contacts the respondent attorney and speaks with them, seeking an amicable settlement of the matter. Then when such a gesture and offer is refused, the application is filed in court.

If you decide to go to the Supreme Court (a more expensive proceeding), then you will definitely need a lawyer to draft the application for a declaration of paternity (with an order for a DNA test to be taken); custody and care and control; and for maintenance of your son. The issue of his access to the child will be considered in the course of the hearing, but I would normally add it to your application by stating that ‘access as determined by the court be granted to the respondent’. I add this because it is your son’s right to know and have a relationship with his father, and this must be brought to the attention of and considered and decided by the court.

You can, of course, file your application in the Family Court which serves your parish without having a lawyer, as the clerks of the court will assist you by drawing up the applications for you and ensure service by one of the court bailiffs. You should tell them that you wish to apply for all that I have stated above and give them the dollars and cents you need for maintenance of your son — this is to say, list his share of your rental or mortgage (if only you two live together, you split the total monthly sum into two as half will be your son’s share) and the same would apply to electricity, water, cooking gas, food, cleaning and laundry supplies charges. Then add the costs of his toiletries, barber fees, his clothing, footwear and other separate charges and you must then add them all so that you have a monthly total. His educational, medical, dental and optical expenses are often ordered to be shared 50/50 and no specific figure is placed in the order. The invoices for these are sent by you to the father who must pay his half- share of these as they become due.

Remember that you must have your detailed list of all items and the dollar value of monthly expenses for each with the total. After you have filed it in the Family Court, ask for a copy and then make every effort to get a lawyer to appear on your and your son’s behalf. You can be sure that your son’s putative father will have a colleague represent him and you ought not to be at a disadvantage of being unrepresented. Once the DNA test result shows that he is the father, the necessary orders will follow, but you want to be sure that your child is not short-changed in any way.

For both courts, you must have available a certified copy of your son’s birth certificate.

So dear mother, do not give up, there are lawyers who abide by their duty as attorneys to act for and represent persons in their quest for justice. This matter is so very important because it is about the rights of a child and what is in that child’s best interests. No one, whoever they are, ought to be permitted to deny the rights of his child to know, among other things, who his father is, and to bear his name and have a relationship with that parent.

Margarette May Macaulay is an attorney-at-law, Supreme Court mediator, notary public, and women’s and children’s rights advocate. Send questions via e-mail to allwoman@jamaicaobserver.com; or write to All Woman, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5. All responses are published. Mrs Macaulay cannot provide personal responses.

DISCLAIMER:

The contents of this article are for informational purposes only and must not be relied upon as an alternative to legal advice from your own attorney.