Good afternoon I want to file a lawsuit to deprive my ex-husband of parental rights! For more than two years he has avoided raising his son. There is no alimony, no assistance, no communication. If I sue, how do I need to prove that the father does not take part in raising the child?
Deprivation of parental rights, according to current legislation, is carried out only in court. The courts apply this measure only in extreme cases, having carefully checked whether the rights of a minor will be infringed by making such a decision.
Legal requirements
The Family Code establishes a list of criteria that a mother and father must meet in order to deprive both or one of them of parental rights. Article 69 of the code, among others, specifies as such a ground evasion of parental responsibilities (raising a child, communicating with him, monitoring the quality of his education, etc.), to which malicious evasion of alimony payments is equated.
Taking into account that the trial in this case is a serious and complex procedure, it is worth very carefully approaching the issue of proving the fact that the father does not participate in raising the child and does not fulfill other parental obligations.
Is it worth confirming paternity: practical advice and pitfalls.
Often mothers who are trying with all their might to protect the rights of a child born out of wedlock are unaware of the difficulties they have to go through.
Fathers often do not want to admit the fact of paternity. You have to prove it through the court. And only if the man really turns out to be the father of the child, will he reimburse all the costs of the trial and the expensive examination.
If DNA establishes that he is not the father, all expenses will remain on the shoulders of the mother.
Another nuance is the loss of the status of a single mother, and the acquisition of new problems. This situation in practice often has more disadvantages than advantages.
Even if paternity is recognized, alimony for an illegitimate child can only be recovered from official income.
And if a man does not have official employment and is hiding from the bailiffs, everything can drag on. It will be impossible to restore the benefits of a single mother.
Also, men whose paternity has been proven through court may still not recognize themselves as such. They will not give the child any warmth, love, or attention.
And in retaliation, they will also create obstacles: after all, in addition to the responsibilities, the newly made father also acquires rights to the child. And to deprive the father of these rights, compelling reasons will be required.
In practice, there have often been cases when a woman through the court sought recognition of the paternity of an illegitimate child and the assignment of payments.
But the vengeful father did not consent to travel abroad, because this requires the permission of both parents. And there are a lot of similar pressures when a man acquires the right to paternity.
Methods of proof
The current civil procedural legislation obliges everyone participating in the trial to have evidence of their arguments and demands (Article 56 of the Code of Civil Procedure). Therefore, when preparing for the meeting, the plaintiff (mother) needs to make sure there is confirmation that the father does not take part in the child’s life.
It is always easier to confirm what is done or damaged. But how to prove the absence of something? How to legally justify the fact that a father does not take part in raising his child?
Methods of proof:
- In order to prove non-payment of alimony, you need to obtain the relevant written documents from the bailiffs (if the collection was carried out in court and a writ of execution or a court order was sent to the bailiffs). If no one demanded alimony, then it will not be possible to indicate evasion of its payment. In this case, in court, one can only refer to the fact that after the divorce, the ex-husband does not provide any financial support to his son or daughter on a voluntary basis. To confirm this information, you should obtain testimony from friends and relatives. You can also submit written requests to your ex-spouse, for example, by email or SMS, to participate in the expenses of a common child, as well as his responses with a refusal, or confirm that he is ignoring such requests. The court will take into account the father’s failure to fulfill his obligations to support the child, but, as noted, this fact does not constitute an evasion from paying alimony.
- To prove that the father does not visit the child after the divorce, does not participate in raising his son or daughter, you can provide testimony from relatives, neighbors, acquaintances, etc. At the same time, there should be no obstacles on the part of the mother to the child’s communication with the father. So, if a father strives to spend time with his son or daughter, but the mother, after the divorce, repeatedly prevents him from doing this without good reason, then it is no longer possible to talk about the father avoiding communication with the child. After all, the lack of meetings was not his fault.
- If, for example, an agreement was concluded between the former spouses to establish a procedure for communicating with a child, the conditions of which are not fulfilled by the father, you can file a statement about this fact with the guardianship and trusteeship authority. Since the participation of a representative of this body in the judicial process is mandatory, such an appeal will help prepare the evidence base for the court. After all, the fact that the ex-husband has not been involved in the child’s life for a long time will be recorded and verified by the guardianship department. The court should be provided with a copy of the application submitted to the guardianship authority. Such a document is written evidence and will be included in the court file.
All this evidence: oral and written explanations of witnesses, certificates from the bailiff service, statements and responses from the guardianship and trusteeship authority will be examined by the court to resolve the issue on the merits.
Warm relationships with fathers protect girls from risky sex
Until children reach puberty, the father effect is approximately the same for boys and girls. Both boys and girls who are lucky enough to have dads in their lives do well, and in some cases, outperform their peers. But when hormones kick in, dads become the arbiters of sexual behavior. This is felt most acutely by teenage girls, who are less likely to take sexual risks if they have a good relationship with their father.
“Numerous studies show a connection between the relationship with the father and the sexual behavior of daughters,” says Daniel Delpriore. - A father who is cold or distant can have a negative influence on his daughters' social environment, and this is likely to lead to an early start to sexual activity.
Photo source: pixabay.com
Nuances of the trial
The outcome of the case will largely depend on the position of the child's father during the proceedings. Let us repeat, judges apply deprivation of parental rights only in the most extreme cases, if there are compelling reasons for this. If the ex-husband disagrees with the claim and insists on maintaining parental rights, the court will also carefully consider his arguments.
USEFUL INFORMATION: How to prove that property was not acquired jointly?
However, we should not forget the above-mentioned norm of the Code of Civil Procedure, according to which everyone must prove what he insists on in court. In disagreeing with the claim, the father will have to provide sufficient evidence of the proper fulfillment of parental obligations. But, without any evidence of participation in the child’s life, it will be difficult for him to prove his position.
Alimony for illegitimate children.
Since the law makes no difference whether a child is born in a marriage or not, alimony for an illegitimate child is the same as for children born in a marriage.
This means that the mother of a child can file for alimony even if the man is married to another woman and has children.
But there is a nuance: in order to apply for child support, the father must be included in the child’s birth certificate.
Lawsuits are also filed on behalf of single mothers who want to protect the rights of their children.
The procedure will be standard: the blood father will be required to pay child support until he turns 18. But she will lose her status as a single mother.
Characteristics sample parents do not participate in the child’s life and do not appear
Games and interests.
Loves to play musical instruments, mindlessly pressing the keys, with soft toys. Does not participate in role-playing games. He treats his toys with interest, doesn’t break them, but doesn’t let others play with them either. Shows interest in new toys, secretly taking them home. The game is accompanied by sound combinations.
Character traits.
He goes to kindergarten with interest and loves to play with some children. He doesn’t react in any way to the teacher’s calls, he just looks intently into his eyes. Spends his free time alone, playing with himself. It doesn't help other guys. Touchy, complains about other children and cries. The children in the group hardly notice him. He rejoices at his success, clapping his hands.
Sample reference for a parent to the guardianship and trusteeship authorities
- Parent's profile information. These include full name, date and year of birth, occupation.
- Health status. Only those diseases that can affect family relationships and the parent’s capacity are taken into account.
- Material security. The general financial condition of the family is assessed, and the presence of permanent income is taken into account.
- Descriptions are given of methods of education, character traits and other nuances that can influence the atmosphere in the family.
The atmosphere present in the family is reflected in the child’s mood and academic performance. An experienced and attentive teacher will quickly be able to identify the presence of family problems by calling parents for an explanatory conversation. Therefore, if it is necessary to assess the behavior of the mother or father of the child, the guardianship and trusteeship authorities entrust the writing of characteristics to the class teachers.
Application to the guardianship authorities about improper upbringing of a child
The guardianship authorities must personally verify the information provided . If during a conversation with parents, neighbors or teachers, as well as during an examination of living conditions, no deviations from the norms are found, then the application will not be processed.
The application itself contains the mother’s details, that is, the full name, residential address, contact phone number, place of work and work schedule for making calls. Information about the child must include his full name and date of birth.
This is interesting: Collection of unjust enrichment without a contract, judicial practice
Why is the father not involved in raising the child?
What to do when the ex-husband does not come to his son or daughter for a long time? If you know that your baby’s father will no longer come to him, you can say that the father is forced to leave for a long time. However, you can say this only on the condition that over time you tell the whole truth to the baby and will no longer deceive him.
So that the young mother does not get upset or worry about the fact that the father does not need the child, since the father pays little attention to the baby, it is necessary to involve the husband in raising the baby even during pregnancy. While waiting for the baby to be born, most parents arrange their room in advance and buy baby clothes; this should be done together with the future dad.
Characteristics of a parent (father) for the “Fatherhood” competition
In communicating with his son, Vladimir Alekseevich is attentive, tactful, will always listen to his son and answer his questions; - acts as an equal interlocutor. The son shares his successes and failures with his father . It is clear that the child trusts his father in everything, there is complete understanding between them. Nikita's dad is friendly and friendly with other children.
Vladimir Alekseevich is an example for his children in everything. He is neat, fit, hardworking, friendly, leads a healthy lifestyle and introduces his children to this: he taught both sons to skate and swim. The eldest son Artem is a participant in swimming and athletics competitions. Vladimir Alekseevich was fond of hockey in his youth, and even now plays in amateur competitions; did weightlifting. How does he teach his son Nikita to be orderly? Not every housewife has such order as Nikita’s locker in kindergarten! All things are in their places. If dad makes something, his son Nikita helps nearby.
This is interesting: What does a fixed working day mean?