Legal guardianship

gmu84

Hi,

I'm a single mum to a one and a half year old boy. I was never married to his father and we don't live together but his name is on my son's birth cert. Is there any way he could claim legal guardianship without my consent? Also, do I have the right to apply for a passport for my son without his father's consent?

Thank you!

gcgirl

he would have to go to court to get guardinship,as for the passport once he is not a guarding you can get one!

Carrigart Exile

gmu84 wrote: »

Hi,

I'm a single mum to a one and a half year old boy. I was never married to his father and we don't live together but his name is on my son's birth cert. Is there any way he could claim legal guardianship without my consent? Also, do I have the right to apply for a passport for my son without his father's consent?

Thank you!

Does dad have regular contact with his son?

craiginireland

gmu84 wrote: »

Hi,

I'm a single mum to a one and a half year old boy. I was never married to his father and we don't live together but his name is on my son's birth cert. Is there any way he could claim legal guardianship without my consent? Also, do I have the right to apply for a passport for my son without his father's consent?

Thank you!

He can and will get guardianship (unless he's voilent, scumbag etc) by going to court. It doesn't mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things tbh.

However if you're planning on opposing him in court about guardianship, running off and getting a passport without his permission won't do you any favours whatsoever.

As with most things in life, good communication is key

xxmarymoxx

he cant get guardinship as you are the childs legal guardian once ur not married and u can apply for a passport no probs u have to get a solicitor to sign the back of childs birth cert and thats it

Carrigart Exile

OP, why do you want to stop dad fully acknowledging his son and taking a full and active role in his upbringing?

Nevyn

Carrigart Exile that is not want the op started the thread about.

Nevyn

http://www.treoir.ie/pdfs/guardianship.pdf

Guardianship

A guardian of a child has a duty to maintain and properly care for the child
and has the right to make decisions on all the major matters affecting the
upbringing of the child, e.g. choice of school, medical treatment, adoption,
religious matters, decisions about leaving the country etc. Where a child’s
parents have not married each other, only the mother is automatically a
guardian of her child.

The father’s name in the Register of Births does not give him any
guardianship rights in respect of his child.

How can a father become a joint guardian of his child?
Where both parents are in agreement about the father becoming a joint
guardian then both parents can complete a statutory declaration to this
effect in the presence of a peace commissioner, commissioner for oaths
or notary public. The Statutory Instrument S.I. No 5 of 1998 is
available from Government Publications (€2.03) or the National
Information Centre of TREOIR. The S.I. No 5 can also be downloaded
from the front page of our website, www.treoir.ie. Currently there is
nowhere to register this form so it is important to keep it in a safe place
and perhaps make an extra copy.

Where the mother is not in agreement with the father becoming a joint
guardian then the father can apply to the district court to become a joint
guardian with the mother of his child, whether or not his name is entered
in the Register of Births.

While the mother’s views are taken into account by the court in making a
decision, the fact that she may not consent does not automatically mean
that the court will refuse the order sought by the father. The decision of
the court will be made with the interest of the child being the first and
paramount consideration.

Where a father has been appointed a joint guardian then his consent is
required for passport applications and for the adoption of the child (by the
mother and her husband or by another couple). Guardianship should not
be confused with custody, which involves the day to day care of the child.
Where joint guardians cannot reach an agreement on an issue
concerning the child then an application can be made to the court and
the court will make a decision in the child’s best interest.

Removal of guardianship rights
A father who has been appointed joint guardian by a court or by
statutory declaration may be removed from his position as joint guardian
if the court is satisfied that this is in the best interest of the child. The
only way a mother can give up her guardianship rights is by placing her
child for adoption.

http://www.treoir.ie/pdfs/passports.pdf

Parental consent for passport applications
for children whose parents are not married to each other
Where the father is a joint guardian of the child*
that is where the father has been appointed a joint guardian by
Statutory Declaration or through the courts, then and only then
is his consent to any passport application in respect of the child
required.

Where the father is not a joint guardian of the child*
then the consent of the father is not required for passport
purposes.

This applies even where the father’s name is entered in the
Register of Births

If the father has not been appointed a joint guardian by Statutory
Declaration or through the courts* the mother must then swear
an affidavit in the presence of a Commissioner For Oaths, stating
that she is the sole guardian of the child. (These forms can be
obtained from the Passport Office or downloaded from
passport.ie under application forms).

Alternatively both parents can sign the passport application
(Form APS1 - available from your local Garda station), even
though the father is not a joint guardian of the child. However,
the father’s name must be entered in the Register of Births for
this procedure.
*NOTE: where a father has made an application to the court for
guardianship his consent ‘may also be required’

For children born in Ireland after the 1st January 2005:
 Where either parent is an Irish citizen or entitled to be
an Irish citizen the long form birth certificate or passport of
one parent will be required.
 Where neither parent is an Irish citizen there are
differing requirements depending on the nationality and/or
residence of the parent(s).
 Contact the Passport Office for further details or visit their websit


It is no longer possible to have your child’s name added to
your passport (as of 1/10/2004). If your child is already
named on your current passport it is not necessary to
replace your passport until its next renewal date. However,
there are some countries which will require that the child
has his/her own passport immediately. Check with the
destination country’s embassy if you are unsure.

sickpuppy32

xxmarymoxx wrote: »

he cant get guardinship as you are the childs legal guardian once ur not married and u can apply for a passport no probs u have to get a solicitor to sign the back of childs birth cert and thats it

not any more, the MrG case that was in the courts this year means he can persue you to a foreign country and make you come back.

xxmarymoxx

yes because mr g was a legal guardian and had every right to make make her come back and in that case she left the country and had no intentions of coming back if your going on a holiday its different

sickpuppy32

he only applied for guardianship after she had left the country though, the judge ruled that was sufficent

metrovelvet

sickpuppy32 wrote: »

not any more, the MrG case that was in the courts this year means he can persue you to a foreign country and make you come back.

The judge demanded that the case be held in Ireland, that's why she had to come back. She was not ordered to move back to Ireland permanently with the children and the judge made his decision based on the father's behavior [ in that he he acted like a father in the judges view], not on his retroactive application for guardianship.

sickpuppy32

metrovelvet wrote: »

The judge demanded that the case be held in Ireland, that's why she had to come back. She was not ordered to move back to Ireland permanently with the children and the judge made his decision based on the father's behavior [ in that he he acted like a father in the judges view], not on his retroactive application for guardianship.

Your splitting hairs here, the judge stated that that by applying for guardianship even retrospectively the father was showing himeself to be acting like a proper father.
Your correct on the first bit though it should be pointed out that it was an english judge first who refused to hear the case in england because it it could affect irish law and thus the father had to bring the case to the irish courts

Orion

xxmarymoxx wrote: »

he cant get guardinship as you are the childs legal guardian once ur not married and u can apply for a passport no probs u have to get a solicitor to sign the back of childs birth cert and thats it

That's completely incorrect. By default she is the legal guardian but as others have stated there are two ways for an unmarried father to get guardianship:
1. If both are in agreement they sign a legal declaration of guardianship witnessed by a Peace Commissioner or Notary Public.
2. He can apply to the court for legal guardianship status if there is no agreement. She would have to show good reason why he shouldn't be legal guardian if he does this.

I have no idea where you got that rubbish about signing the back of the birth cert. If she is the sole legal guardian she can apply for a passport but has to make an affidavit that she is the sole guardian. If he is the guardian then he must consent.


[edit]On a related note the fact that his name is on the birth cert means nothing in Ireland. It confers no rights whatsoever. It can be used in the family court for legal guardianship and it the couple do get married he would then become legal guardian as a result. But apart from that it means diddley-squat.

sickpuppy32

Macros42 wrote: »

I have no idea where you got that rubbish about signing the back of the birth cert. If she is the sole legal guardian she can apply for a passport but has to make an affidavit that she is the sole guardian. If he is the guardian then he must consent.
.

i think that maybe there referring to the procedure if you want to get a passport for the child and "daddy isn't around" so to speak. You can sign an oath with your solicitor basically saying that the father has no contact with the child but if your lying, you can be prosecuted. I also believe writing on a birth cert is illegal come to think of it.

Part of the procedure for completing an Affidavit of Sole Guardianship does involve the solicitor signing their name on the back of the birth certificate.