If your son or daughter comes to you with an unplanned pregnancy, your window to act is short and closing. Assuming all parties agree that birth is the best option, other decisions must be made.
If you are the parent of a minor son who is facing claims that he impregnated another minor girl, he may have both rights and responsibilities to the as-yet-unborn offspring. But some things must first be sorted out.
Determine paternity
Unless and until an unmarried male in Florida is listed on a child’s birth certificate, he has no official rights as its father. Should the mother deny or refuse to acknowledge which partner could be the father, the father must seek paternity and pursue litigation to get parental rights and establish any support orders.
Establishing paternity empowers males to be dads
Florida is not unique in giving special custodial rights to mothers. After all, they are the ones who carry the babies in utero and give birth to them. But there are also good reasons for Florida fathers to get paternity established.
There can potentially be medical tests done to determine the paternity of a fetus, but they can be costly or pose harm to the baby. Your son may need to wait until the birth to request a legal DNA test. Naturally, that can make for problems between the minor couple, but your loyalty should lie fully with your child until you know for certain the paternity of the baby.
Setting up a formal, legal plan of care for custody of the newborn is prudent at this stage. What help can your son realistically contribute, and what is he legally required to pay are two important questions to pose now.