Florida recognizes a few routes to legal paternity. Parents can sign a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, the state's child support program can establish it through an administrative process, or either parent can file a paternity action in court. The court route is the one that can also set time-sharing and a parenting plan.
Which path fits depends on what the parents need and whether they agree. A paternity lawyer in Clearwater can explain why a court action is usually necessary when a father wants enforceable parenting time, since a voluntary acknowledgment on its own does not establish a time-sharing schedule.
