Father's obligations

B

Bongo

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A freind of mine has managed to become a "father to be" by accident. The woman & himself do not plan on staying together, so she will be a lone parent. What financial obligations does he have to the mother/child?

Tks
 
you play you play,
his child, he has to cough up to maintain his child's living until the can do it for themselves. As to what extent? i do not know - he should get a solicitor.
 
Technically you are liable to pay maintenance if you acknowledge paternity or are forced by a court to undergo a paternity test, but there is no formal process in Ireland outside of going through the courts the long and hard way, which for most lone parents is just too costly.

Attempts to force absent fathers to fork out in the UK through the Child Support Agency have now been accepted as a total failure so its unlikely (though not improbable) that Ireland would try to fund its every spiralling cost of supporting single parent families in this way. The irony of the entire support system for lone (usually female) parents is that it has to a large extent transferred fiscal responsiblity from the absent parent to society at large. What this means is that everybody pays for it through their taxes - including absent parents. Until the day when somebody accepts the idea of directly taxing absent parents, the status quo will remain. To be honest, it is the next best solution to a direct tax on absent fathers (which would be beset by constant legal challenges).
 
there is no formal process in Ireland outside of going through the courts the long and hard way, which for most lone parents is just too costly.
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Single mothers get free legal aid so there is nothing costly about it for them.
 
purplealien said:
Single mothers get free legal aid so there is nothing costly about it for them.
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Are you sure? I don't see anything about special treatment for single mothers on the [broken link removed]?

lff12 said:
Until the day when somebody accepts the idea of directly taxing absent parents, the status quo will remain. To be honest, it is the next best solution to a direct tax on absent fathers (which would be beset by constant legal challenges).
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Isn't this pretty-much the system that failed miserably in the UK?
 
Are you sure? I don't see anything about special treatment for single mothers on the [broken link removed]?
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I know my friend did anyway. I'll be seeing her today - i'll ask her about it.
 
Keep it on topic-this thread is about a father's obligations, not single mothers.
 
He can be brought through the family court process. It is not as formal as regular court. It can be the judge, both parties & court oficial. No solicitors necessary if you can sort it out amicably.

The judge will make an order on weekly/monthly payment. Your friend has 2 choices. Pay as ordered by court. Or don't pay, be brought back to court and have his earning endorsed at source. This means that his employer will become directly involved.

If your friend does make any payments, do so by electronic funds transfer so that he has a record of any payments. Don't give cash without a receipt.
 
If this was a very temporary relationship, perhaps a paternity test may be a good investment for the guy.
 
The going rate for maintenance is 75 euro per week in my area. I think you can offset this against tax.The judge will presume your the father unless you can prove differently.(blood test).I have had 3 personal visits to the family district court myself on a different matter & I can advise you to keep well clear if possible. In one instance I had to wait 8 hours before my case was heard. The waiting rooms was packed & there was not even enough seats.
 
The fathers' obligations go beyond the financial even if the child was unintentional, (as I'm guessing, a lot of us were, in or outside of marriage). So they are both faced with this child they didn't plan. Why wouldn't co-parenting work? This wouldn't be the first child born to two people who don't plan on having a long term relationship with each other. From now on it's about the child and it shouldn't be beyond the wit of them to work out some sort of plan whereby the child spends good time with both even if they don't have any feelings for each other.
Good luck to the three of them. I hope your friend can see that this could be the start of a fantastic new life as a Dad. Most adults enjoy it ...why wouldn't he? Yes, children can be expensive so I suppose he should start saving now for all the things they need in the first year and then maybe work out between them how they fund things going forward.
 
Maintenance for a spouse is tax deductable, and only if enforced by a court order. But maintenance for a child is not deductable under the premise that it is the obligation of the parents to provide for the upbringing of their children.
 
bocade said:
Is it just me or is this depressing. What price a child, not to mention the implied single parent families? Hey, at least its tax deductable.
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Yes this is depressing. I think that if this is his child he should want to support him/her in any way he can. (I am not suggesting he doesn't btw) Who can say/not say that there is a going rate to support a child. Looks like the mom will be coughing up the most of it then if it's only 75 squid a week!

.Holy hell.....when did dialogue lose its importance? Can they not come to some arrangement about it?
 
75euro may be the obligation but very stingy. A parent should want the best for his child and obviously 75/week is not sufficient to support a child (nor is twice that!)
 
Generally, his obligations as a father are to help in whatever way he can to make sure to work with the mother and try to bring the child up as loved, healthy, well educated, well mannered, and as emotionally secure and confident as possible.

Is he only thinking about money? (tut tut)

He should also consider becoming legal guardian to the child. Have a look at this [broken link removed]

to find out how, as an unmarried father has very little rights in Ireland.
 
Bill said:
75euro may be the obligation but very stingy. A parent should want the best for his child and obviously 75/week is not sufficient to support a child (nor is twice that!)
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Very stingy? - maybe if that person has is single and got a good job. Not for people who have a wife and kids to support aswell. There's all different circumstances. Father's should be allowed pay what they can ( and i mean genuinely pay what they can)- money should not be the issue - a stable and loving relationship should be.
Fathers have no rights - it's ridicolous!
 
Can people please take rants to Letting Off Steam and stick to discussing the substantive issues here?
 
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