Children born out of wedlock often take their mothers’ maiden names as their surnames at birth. When biological fathers subsequently seek to legitimate their parent-child relationships, some of them pursue a change of name from the mother’s name to their own. This article explores the procedures and...
This concluding article of a two-part series explores the types of misconduct deemed egregious enough to terminate a mother or father’s parental rights, as well as misbehaviors found insufficient to justify termination of parental rights in specific cases. Typically, conduct imperiling parental ri...
A parent in Georgia who has abandoned, neglected, abused, or failed to support a child can lose his or her parental rights by voluntarily surrendering them, or upon entry of a court order terminating those parental rights in certain juvenile court proceedings and in superior court actions involving...
In legal actions to determine the paternity of a child conceived out of wedlock or to legitimate the parental relationship of such a child’s biological father, Georgia law expressly permits a court to award child support to the custodial parent upon a determination of paternity or entry of an order...
Many unwed mothers welcome biological fathers’ physical, emotional, and economic participation in their children’s lives. Others – particularly in cases of abuse, addiction, or criminal behavior – seek to protect children from any contact with their fathers. When a biological father balks at his exc...