Fathers’/Men’s Rights Attorneys in Parker, CO

Protecting the rights of Colorado fathers to fair custody and support orders

As a father, you generally have the same rights to child custody, child support, and other familial benefits as mothers. Yet fathers sometimes struggle to uphold these rights. Gender stereotypes may lead some parties to side with the mother when determining custody or creating support orders. 

At Palmer Family Law, we help fathers understand and uphold their rights in Parker, CO. Our men’s rights attorneys understand the essential role of fathers in the familial unit. We aim to help fathers protect their place in the family while prioritizing the best interests of the child.

Why Do Fathers Face Challenges With Protecting Their Rights? 

 In Colorado, fathers inherently enjoy the same parental rights as mothers. However, they often struggle to uphold these rights during divorce or when living separately from their child’s other parent.

For many decades, mothers were more likely to receive primary custody of children than fathers. While this trend has shifted, gender biases can still lead judges to side with the mother when awarding custody.

Traditional family roles often mean fathers spend more time working outside of the home while mothers play a more direct role in raising children. When these roles are present in divorcing couples, the court may see that the children are already used to being raised primarily by the mother and factor this into its custody determination.

Fathers need to show that they play an active role in raising their children to protect their rights to custody. They also need to understand that they enjoy equal rights to parenting time as mothers and take steps to protect these rights in court.

Our attorneys are well versed in fathers’ rights in Colorado and help clients advocate for these rights.

Establishing Paternity and Paternal Rights in Colorado 

Often, one of the first steps in upholding fathers’ rights is establishing paternity. Mothers are automatically granted maternal rights at the time of a child’s birth. But if the mother did not list you as the father on the child’s birth certificate, you may not automatically have legal rights to parent the child. You will need to legally establish that you are their father. 

Colorado law offers a few methods of establishing paternity:

• Sign an Acknowledgement of Paternity: If the child’s mother has acknowledged that you are the father, you can both sign a voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity form. Filing this form with the Colorado Vital Records Department in front of a witness establishes paternity. 
• Seek an Administrative Paternity Order: When one parent applies for child support services, this may prompt Child Support Services to initiate an administrative support order. Both parents would receive a Notice of Financial Responsibility and have the opportunity to respond to the order. Either parent can request genetic testing to resolve disputes. This process does not involve the court. 
• Seek a Judicial Paternity Order: If either party does not agree to sign an Acknowledgement of Paternity form and the need for an administrative paternity order has not arisen, they can ask the court to order the father and child to submit to DNA testing to establish paternity. Once paternity is established, the court enters the final order and outlines the legal responsibilities of both parents. 

Establishing paternity is important for several reasons:

• It allows the child to feel confident in who their father is.
• It grants the father access to various rights and benefits.
• It clearly outlines the father’s responsibilities.

A Father’s Rights To Custody in Colorado

When a child’s parents live separately, they must determine how they will share the allocation of parental responsibilities (APR). If they cannot reach an agreement on their own, the court will determine custody on their behalf. 

Colorado prefers 50/50 custody arrangements whenever possible. There are two distinct types of parental responsibilities that need to be accounted for in a parenting plan:

• Parenting time: The amount of time the child spends with each parent, including where the child lives and when 
• Decision-making responsibilities: Who has the authority to make major decisions about the child’s upbringing regarding their education, healthcare, religious affiliation, etc.

Joint custody would enable both parents to share both of these responsibilities. The parents would need to work out an arrangement that prioritizes the child’s best interests, or let the court make this arrangement for them. 

Meanwhile, one parent might seek sole custody for one or both of these responsibilities if they believe that would be in the child’s best interests. 

While Colorado law prefers to divide parenting time and decision making equally between both parents, it prioritizes the child’s interests above all. If the child’s mother argues that the father having joint custody would not be best for the child, the court may be more likely to side with this arrangement, depending on the circumstances and evidence provided.

Fathers sometimes feel they do not have much say in custody battles. Our attorneys can help advocate for your parental rights in court and seek a fair custody arrangement. 

Building a Case for Custody As a Father

As a father, you should not assume that the court will award you joint custody. You should come prepared to court hearings with evidence that your joint or sole custody would be in the child’s best interests. 

It may be helpful to demonstrate that you currently have active involvement in the child’s life and a strong relationship with them. Active involvement could mean:

• Knowing about their friends, interests, and extracurricular activities
• Attending school events and parent-teacher conferences
• Maintaining consistent contact and spending quality time with them regularly, even if they do not currently live with you
• Knowing about their medical needs and attending medical appointments with them 
• Establishing consistent routines when they are in your care, including bedtimes, mealtimes, and homework times. 

Providing evidence of your active involvement in their life or other claims may be more challenging. The following types of evidence may be helpful:

• Witness statements from teachers, caregivers, or family friends who can attest to the child’s well-being under your care
• Communications with the other parent showing your co-parenting efforts
• Financial records showcasing your contributions to the child’s upbringing
• Records of all interactions with your child and their other parent throughout the custody case

Seeking Child Support From the Child’s Mother 

Fathers who have primary custody of their children sometimes encounter challenges in seeking child support from the child’s other parent. Under Colorado law, both parents are responsible for the child’s financial upbringing. The non-custodial parent is often legally mandated to pay child support.

Our attorneys can help you pursue a court order to seek child support payments from your child’s other parent. If a court order is already in place that the other parent has violated, we can help you seek an enforcement of orders from the court. A judge may order their wages to be garnished until they have repaid the amount they owe. 

Child support payments are important to your child’s well-being. As a father, you may have the right to seek these payments from the child’s other parent. 

Consult With an Experienced Family Law Attorney in Parker, CO

 Protecting your rights and interests as a father may feel like a frustrating uphill battle. But having a family law attorney on your side who is experienced in protecting fathers’ rights can be helpful.

Our attorneys can provide legal advice and guidance to help you understand and advocate for your rights. We have helped many fathers fight for legal decision making, visitation rights, and parenting time under Colorado law. 

Contact Palmer Family Law today at 720-399-7434 to request a free case review with our family law attorneys in Parker, CO.