Full question:
I got my marriage annulled by the family court in Ohio after I found out that my husband had another wife living in New York. We were married for 10 months. I was 6 months pregnant with his child when I received the decree of annulment. He refuses to acknowledge the child to be his in order to avoid paying child support. I will not be able to support the child on my own. What do I do in such a situation?
- Category: Paternity
- Subcategory: Annulment
- Date:
- State: Ohio
Answer:
In Ohio, certain situations create a presumption of paternity. According to ORC Ann. 3111.03, a man is presumed to be the natural father of a child if:
- He and the child's mother were married, and the child is born during the marriage or within three hundred days after the marriage ends (due to annulment, divorce, or death).
- He and the mother attempted to marry before the child's birth, and the marriage can be declared invalid.
- An acknowledgment of paternity has been filed and not finalized.
Since your child will be born within three hundred days of your annulment, the law presumes that your husband is the father. This presumption means he may be legally obligated to pay child support, as outlined in ORC Ann. 3103.031. The law states that a biological parent or a person determined to be the natural father has a duty to support the child. This obligation continues as long as the child is in school full-time, even beyond the age of majority.
For further assistance, you may want to consult a family law attorney to help you establish paternity and pursue child support.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.