What are my rights as a father?

[MPH]

Recently, my girlfriend of 3 years left with our two kids (2 1/2 yr old and a one-month old) after a "dissagreement".
I have no idea where she is staying and I am going crazy because I have not seen my kids in days.
She is not neccisarily a bad mother or anything- but I need to know how to get my kids back...FAST!

I live in Wisconsin. I have heard about this "parenting plan" thing but I don't understand what it is.

WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE?!?!?? Since we are not married, do I even have any rights to make her bring them back?



Thanks for any help you can give....

[janM]

You are right in that you presently have no rights. They have not been proven to be your kids (have they?).

You will need to file for paternity, if not done yet, child support, and parenting time. I'm not sure how you'll go about serving her with papers if you don't know where she is. I believe there are articles on this site about finding absent parents. Since this is recent, you can file where you both have lived. Check with the court house to see how you can do this, and you may want to consult with a local attorney. Most will do this for free or low cost.

Good luck.

[MPH]

Well... we filled out a voulentary paternety aknowledgement form for the fisrt one. We filled out another one for our newest, however, it has not been sent in yet. I'm not sure if she has that or not.
Would those aknowledgement forms be enough to prove I am the father? And would that automaticaly give me rights in the state of Wisconsin?

Thanks for your help! Any more info would be great..=+)

[janM]

It depends on your state or maybe even your county. Some places will take that, some will take the birth certificate (did you sign those?) and some will still require a DNA test. Even if they accept any of those, I'm not sure those rights would be automatic, you may still need to file to establish them, and get support and parenting time, etc, set up.

There are state-specific resources here on this site that may list the requirements, or you can check with the courthouse.

Personally, I would get DNA tests. No point in supporting a child (or 2) that's not yours. I think you may need to file to require her to return for the tests, if you can locate her to have her served.

[MPH]

No, I did not sign the birth certificate... I was told that since we are not married I could not sign it.

Anyhow- I got ahold of her and we talked face to face last night. Hopefully I will get to see the kids today. I am going to try and work this out without getting the courts involved; she seems a little more open than I thought she would be.

So- thank you for your advise... I really hope this can be resolved soon for the kids' sake! We are talking again today, I think. :)

[janM]

Who told you you couldn't sign it? Doesn't sound right. My son signed his son's, they weren't married, we're in Ohio.

I'm glad you two are talking. Just keep in mind, if she takes off again, you will be back to square one.

Good luck to you all.