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Divorce Lawyers New York - Father’s Rights

Father’s Rights

We do not think about father’s rights until they become threatened. The rights afforded to fathers are created in law. These are not the same things as natural rights. It is an important concept to understand what seems to us to be the most natural thing in the world, the love of our children. It is governed by laws; state laws that layout the specific rights and obligations. Now, it is a fundamental right to parent a child. A fundamental right is a rate that is protected by the United States Constitution, either in the Bill of Rights, or inferred through the protections of the Constitution. Fundamental rights cannot be infringed upon by the courts without a compelling reason. Now, the state claims an interest in the well-being of all of its citizens and especially children that reside in its jurisdiction.

The court uses a best interest of the child standard when it decides a divorce case that involves children. This best interest is balanced against the parents’ fundamental right to parent and this right cannot be abrogated without a fair hearing and a finding of serious endangerment to the child.

What are some of the rights to father your child? Everybody has a fundamental right. Every father has a fundamental right to raise his child. This ranges from retaining full custody to having only visitation. So visitation is a right that's protected by the Constitution even without a custody award. A father has the right to have parenting time with his child. Another right that a father has is to be involved in his child's life. This includes involvement in the child’s education. This means access to his school records, school reports and involvement with school activities. A father also has the right to share his religious beliefs with his child or children. Even in cases where a divorce decree dictates that a child will be raised in a certain religion, a father retains the right to share his own beliefs with the child.

Along with rights come duties and obligations. Both parents have a legal obligation to support minor children. In most cases, this obligation takes the form of a child support payment from the non-custodial parent. With few exceptions, these child support awards follow state guidelines that are found in the different state laws. If you are a divorced father, it is important that you come to understand what your rights and obligations are under the law so that you can best enjoy those rights and defend them if necessary.

Fathers face unique challenges in that way when attempting to parent their children. They must confront a variety of societal biases that see the father as a secondary parent or an adjunct to the child's mother at best. This is a situation that not only is unfair to fathers, but in the end, is devastating to the fatherless child.