Establishing paternity by including the father on the birth certificate gives a child born outside of marriage the same legal rights as a child born to married parents.

Children with legal fathers are entitled to benefits through their fathers. These include Social Security benefits, veteran's benefits, and inheritance rights. Children may also benefit by knowing the family's biological, cultural, and medical history.

When a married couple has a child, the law automatically recognizes the husband as the child's legal father so paternity does not need to be determined.

When an unmarried woman has a child, an official act is needed to establish the legal father of the child. This is called the establishment of paternity.

Child support offices may assist either parent in establishing paternity for a child who does not have a legal father. Paternity must be established before the court can order child support.

Paternity can be established in the following ways:

• If a child is born to an unmarried mother, she and the alleged father can sign an Affidavit of Parentage form: http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132-2939-18708--,00.html to legally establish the father's legal rights (sometimes referred to as paternity acknowledgment), or
• The mother and the alleged father can ask the court to determine the legal father of the child. The prosecuting attorney's office in each county is responsible for filing and prosecuting actions to establish paternity.

• the man is not the biological father of the child, or
• a greater than 99% likelihood that the man is the father of the child.

• For questions on paternity establishment contact a DHS support specialist toll-free at 1-866-540-0008.