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Wisconsin fathers rights is a constant topic in child custody divorce and paternity cases. The attached article is certainly food for thought.
The article makes several good points, strangely enough until the last paragraph. Despite accurate information earlier in the article about the serious changes in the legal system’s view of father’s involvement, the article concludes on a rather pessimistic note.
It is absolutely false to state that it is difficult for unmarried fathers to assert their parental rights, including child custody. It is true that unmarried fathers do not have automatic parental rights. Until paternity is legally established, the mother has sole custody. However, establishing paternity is very easy to do, assuming that the father remained in contact with the mother. The father simply files a petition for paternity alleging that he is the father. The mother then acknowledges his fatherhood, or must take a paternity test to do so. At that point, the court will usually grant custody to both parents and the father’s rights are secured.
The key, however, is to establish Wisconsin fathers rights immediately. In my experience, many fathers wait to establish their rights. By the time they do so, they missed establishing a relationship with their young child. At that point, while the legal system may grant the father rights, it is likely that the mother will retain greater time with the child.
