Okay, help me out here.

[apocalypsos]

You are a guy who was just told by a woman you had a one-night stand with that she is about to pop with your kid. But then she dies after giving birth to the kid, who's premature and has to stay in an incubator. What are the custody proceedings on that? They have to do a paternity test before they'll give the baby to you, right? And how long does that take?

(Yes, I think I'm writing that damn Grey's Anatomy plotbunny. God help me.)

Comments

[titti]

In Washington State, if the mother is dead, then the case is referred to Division of Child Support (DCS). DCS will then refer the case to a prosecuting attorney for paternity establishment through the court. Usually, that process includes genetic testing. In a case like the one you're describing there would most definitely be DNA testing.

Also a guardian ad litem that acts as the representative and advocate for the child must be appointed. (The father can pick him/her).

Time frame (and here I'm giving you an estimate based on NY) would be a week or so if there is an emergency.

[fox1013.livejournal.com]

I feel compelled to remind you that, as it is Grey's Anatomy, the need for "logic" and "common sense" and "timeliness" is roughly equivalent to the need to include zombies in your story.

It's great when they show up, it's fun for everyone, but it is so very far from required.

[laurelin-kit.livejournal.com]

You are a guy who was just told by a woman you had a one-night stand with that she is about to pop with your kid.

<a href="http://www.apple.com/trailers/universal/knockedup/>I totally thought you were talking about this at first.</a>

[laurelin-kit.livejournal.com]

Oh, for the lack of a quotation mark.

[dhaunea.livejournal.com]

If she puts his name on the birth certificate and he doesn't contend that it's NOT his, in most places, a paternity test is not required.

[elorie.livejournal.com]

They do a blood type test on the baby immediately if there's a question about Rh factor; this can possibly be used to rule *out* someone as a father in some cases, but not definitely identify him. You could use that fact for suspense.

(My blood type is O-, which is sort of the default setting. Any A, B, or Rh+ in my son's blood type...he's O+....had to have come from his father. If I understand how the genetics works correctly, he could not be the child of someone with AB blood, because he would then either be A or B. He *could* be the child of someone with A or B blood because they could have an O recessive; as it happens, his father's blood type is O+)

...Aaaanyway, if the child had to be in an incubator, he wouldn't have physical custody until the baby came out of NICU anyway, and that would probably be plenty of time for the DNA test to come back. Legal stuff would take a little longer, but could possibly be pushed through, and it's possile he could have custody by the time a preemie was ready to come home.

However, if you're trying to work a romantic angle, I should mention that caring for a newborn makes you TOO GODDAMN TIRED for any shenanigans. Unless that's your reaction to being sleep deprived and punchy.

[titti]

Actually in many states, including Washington State, you can't include the father's name unless a) you are married to him (regardless if he's the father, and yes, I know how strange that is) or b) he signed an official Paternity affidavit.

[elorie.livejournal.com]

That's true. But she has to be alive long enough to sign a birth certificate, and conscious. My son's birth certificate wasn't signed for a week after he was born, because I was *not* conscious.

[marag.livejournal.com]

I can't tell you anything about paternity, but if you need some realistic details about a NICU and what it's like to see your baby in one, I'm your gal.

Thirteen days in a NICU, yo. I'm fairly expert. I can tell you how often they feed the baby and what kind of bottles they use and how weird preemies look with their sticks for legs and arms...

[astrothsknot.livejournal.com]

My mother is very fond of informing everyone that wanted to jump my father's boones a fortnight after I was born.

Dad turned her down with the remark "Don't you have to wait for the stitches to come out first?"

[dhaunea.livejournal.com]

And in equally many states, if she registers someone as the baby's father and he doesn't say it isn't... it goes right on there. *shrugs* Things're changing, but not all over.

Understand, I don't watch Grey's Anatomy, so I have no clue as to the actual discussion, but my sister-in-law listed the father of her baby, to whom she wasn't married and who wasn't in attendance, and they put it on the birth certificate. That was in Minnesota about... two years ago. Things might've changed in the interim.

[dhaunea.livejournal.com]

See, I have no idea what the circumstances are here, as I don't watch this show. The last time I was at a birth, the mother signed almost before they were done cleaning her up, but yes, was conscious at the time.

I have no idea if the woman here was unconscious... or if she survived the birth by a few hours and was conscious, or anything else.

*shrugs* I just stated that if SHE put his name on there and HE didn't say no... then in at least two of the states I've lived in, it's a go. If she didn't... then it's all moot.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Well, she's currently still alive and still pregnant, although she got really badly crushed in the facial area when a concrete pylon fell on her. They've already implied she probably won't be able to carry the kid to term, so I figure one complication and she's gone and the baby's out.

[titti]

Yeah, Grey's is in Washington State. I'm in NY and it's the same.

I also did a Westlaw search and in Minnesota the father and the mother need to sign A RECOGNITION OF PARENTAGE FORM. This can be signed while in the hospital.

[dhaunea.livejournal.com]

If they don't think she'll survive the birth there are all kinds of fun legal things that can be done ahead of time. Heck, she could name him legal guardian in case of her death. *grins*

Child custody, in these days, can be so bizarre that almost anything can be done and probably has been.

[dhaunea.livejournal.com]

Either that's changed or the hospital was sloppy. He was on the birth certificate as the father and I know for a fact he never signed a damn thing.

[titti]

I've been practicing since 1993, and in NY that's always been the norm. I have the feeling that the hospital was sloppy unless they signed it at pre-screening which some hospitals do a month or so before birth.

[teenygozer.livejournal.com]

Also a guardian ad litem that acts as the representative and advocate for the child must be appointed. (The father can pick him/her).

That seems counter-intuitive, given that the father might tend to pick a guardian ad litem who would act in *his* interest rather than the child's. I was talking to a friend of mine who's a laywer in Wisconsin the other day, and he mentioned the guardian ad litem in a case he had worked on, and I seem to remember he said "court-appointed guardian ad litem". I wonder why Washington state allows the parent(s) to pick the child's advocate, when there's a chance for collusion!

It's funny, I'd never heard the words "guardian ad litem" before that convo with my friend, and now the phrase seems to be popping up all over!

[dhaunea.livejournal.com]

She was from out of state and it was an unexpected delivery and ahead of time. I'm going to chalk it up to sloppy, I think.

[titti]

Actually what happens is that the father picks him and then the court needs to approve it, so the mother or child services have an opportunity to bring up any objection that they have.

[musesfool.livejournal.com]

Wait, you mean zombies AREN'T required in Grey's stories?

I refuse to believe that's so.

[fox1013.livejournal.com]

Man.

If they are, then I need to get started, cause I clearly do not have enough Grey's fic for remix.

(Hee.)

(Hey, can "remix" = "same story but with zombies"? Because that would be fairly awesome. For the record.)

[musesfool.livejournal.com]

Dude! That would be so awesome as to be beyond textual rendering!

Next year, Remix/Redux VI: Just Add Zombies!

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Heh. This is true. :)

God knows I'm going to fudge the medical part of the whole thing anyway. Why not the legal part, too?