Nebraska law presumes that you are the father of any child born to your wife during your marriage. However, if your child’s birth occurs prior to the time of your marriage to his or her mother, you need to establish your paternity.
The easiest way to do this consists of obtaining an Acknowledgment of Paternity form from the hospital at the time of your child’s birth. Both you and the mother must sign this form in front of a notary public. You will then need to file it with the Vital Records Management office of Nebraska’s Department of Health and Human Services.
If you fail to sign and file the AOP more or less immediately after your child’s birth, you likely will need to go to court in order to establish your paternity.
Court action
Per the Nebraska Supreme Court, you must file your Complaint for Paternity in your county’s district court within four years of your child’s birth. In addition, your child must have lived in Nebraska for at least the six months prior to the filing of your complaint.
The legal process for establishing paternity consists of many steps, including the following:
- Filing your Complaint for Paternity
- Submitting a Confidential Employment and Health Insurance information form.
- Submitting a Social Security Number, Gender Birth Date form pertaining to your child.
- Submitting a Financial Affidavit for Child Support and Child Support Calculation.
- Obtaining a court date and giving your child’s mother official notice of the fact that you filed the Complaint and when the judge will hear your case.
After you and your child’s mother testify at the hearing, the judge issues a finding of paternity and a decree of custody, parenting time and child support.
