In this video, John talks about a particular situation of paternity: biological father Vs legal father. Let's talk about it!
There is a rule of law in the paternity area that's very unusual called Equitable estoppel.
And basically what it means is that if a man holds himself out to be the father of the child, then, in fact, they're after a period of time, he will be declared the father of the child, even though he's not the biological father of the child.
Why is that done?
well, essentially that law says that a child should not be defrauded.
The child thought that person was the father has lived his life as that person was the father.
And in fact, the father has held him, that man, I should say, held himself out to be the father. Well, the law will declare him to be the father.
I can't tell you the number of very interesting cases I've had in this area and I'd be happy to tell my stories to anybody who would like to listen. So, don't hesitate to give me a call with any of your unusual paternity issues. I guarantee you there's something out there I haven't heard before, but there's a very interesting fact pattern out there just waiting.