Biological/Putative fathers are not considered parties in most cases in juvenile court.
Only legal fathers are considered parties in those cases.
“Legal father” means a male who has not surrendered or had terminated his rights to a child and who:
- Has legally adopted the child;
- Was married to the biological mother of the child at the time of the child’s birth or within the usual period of gestation, unless paternity was disproved by a final order pursuant to Article 3 of Chapter 7 of Title 19 of the Official Code of Georgia;
- Married the legal mother of the child after the child was born and recognized the child as his own, unless paternity was disproved by a final order pursuant to Article 3 of Chapter 7 of Title 19 of the Official Code of Georgia; OR
- Has legitimated the child by a final order pursuant to O.C.G.A. §19-7-22.
*** Having signed the child’s birth certificate does not make someone the child’s legal father and confers no rights upon said person for the purposes of juvenile court proceedings. If you were not married to the mother at the time of the child’s birth, you must take some legal action in order to be considered the child’s legal father.