A man who voluntarily signs a birth certificate and then finds out later that he is not the biological father of a child in which they signed an acknowledgment of paternity form. Can be considered a victim of paternity fraud potentially. I say potentially because it must be proven that the mother intentionally wanted to deceive the alleged father.
Can a mother sign an alleged father’s name on an acknowledgment of paternity form?
No. From my understanding legally a mother cannot sign an acknowledgment of paternity form for the alleged father. At least she cannot sign it without his permission. This is assuming the alleged father may have a disability at the time of birth which hinders his ability to sign the document himself. If this is the case, please seek a Family Law legal professional to assist you with the legal protocol if the alleged father is unable to sign a birth certificate due to a physical disability.
Now, if a mother does decide to sign an acknowledgment of paternity form without the alleged father’s knowledge she has just committed fraud. And fraud is known as a forgery which is illegal and therefore does have some criminal ramifications if found guilty.
More importantly, in order for the mother to sign an acknowledgment of paternity (AOP) form and, the AOP form be viable.The mother must have or know your Social Security number. It is the Social Security number that becomes the tracking mechanism for child support to track down non-custodial parents who have not paid their back child support payments.
How does this type of fraud happen to men?
Normally, when a man is in a relationship that he values. Often times the man will take his girlfriend or wife’s word and even sometimes not question his significant other about the unborn child being his own.
Is a man’s non-belief that his woman would cheat on him leaves the opportunity for the woman to knowingly and, in some cases unknowingly deem the wrong man the biological father of a child. If this is the case, The alleged father normally will partake in the child’s birth at the hospital. It is at this moment when a hospital official presents the alleged father with an acknowledgment of paternity form shortly after the birth of the child. These alleged father’s that are presented with this paperwork seldom read the paperwork they are presented at the hospital. It is at this moment that many men allow bliss to overrule logic and they sign the paperwork before reading what they actually signed up for.
What is really unfortunate is that many men are not familiar with their own state laws. It is this ignorance and bliss that can cloud a man’s judgment which is why, it is my opinion many men, willingly fall victim, to this deception.
What is the difference between a birth certificate and an acknowledgment of paternity?
An acknowledgment of paternity is a document that establishes paternity and a birth certificate is a document that records the birth of the child. It is important to note, a birth certificate can still be issued without the alleged father signing the acknowledgment of paternity form. If would like to learn more paternity and the paternity process. Checkout my new e-book on Amazon called Are You? Or Are You Not The Father? The Complete How To Guide To The Paternity Testing Process.