Many parents assume that both the mother and the father have equal rights with regard to a child born out of wedlock. In Georgia, however, this is not true.

Under Georgia law, a father does not have parental authority over a child unless he has gone through the process of legitmation. This is true even if the father's name is on the birth certificate and he is paying child support.

It is best to hire a legitmation attorney and start the process as soon as possible after the child is born. If the father waits too long, the mother could make decisions that interfere with the father's ability to have a relationship with his child.

Without Legitmation, Fathers Have Few Rights

Sadly, one Georgia man was recently forced to learn this lesson the hard way.

Shundy Hicks' daughter was born five years ago. At the time, he was in a relationship with the child's mother, but they were not married.

Although the couple eventually broke up, Hicks continued to have a relationship with his child and paid child support. However, he never went through the process to protect his fathers' rights by having his paternal relationship legitimized.

The mother later married and attempted to have the child adopted by her new husband - who was later deported to Mexico. Although Hicks was eventually able to have the adoption vacated and secure visitation rights, it was too late. The mother had taken the child to Mexico to live with the mother's new husband.

Hicks contacted police, but there was little they could do. The mother had legal custody over the child when she moved and Hicks didn't. Hicks is hoping he will get to see his daughter again someday, but he doesn't know when that will be.

No father should have to go through such an unbearable tragedy as this. If you have fathered a child out of wedlock, contact a Georgia family law attorney to legitimate your paternal relationship as soon as possible.

Source: The Dalton Daily Citizen, "Daughter Missing? Dalton Man Thinks She's in Mexico Now," Mark Millican, Jan. 9, 2012.