Location: WI
My ex and I divorced about a year ago, and she had claimed she wasn’t pregnant at the time, but was. She told me the child was her affair partners kid, not mine, and I have proof she said that in texts.
Now she’s texted me saying I’m getting served a warrant to establish paternity after I didn’t respond to a court summons. A PI has contacted me and claimed I’m going to go to jail if I don’t cooperate with him. I never received a court summons and it can’t be an issue with address because the divorce courts have my new address.
I looked myself up on CCAP and I don’t have any cases or warrants against me even though she claimed I’ll be served a due diligence warrant. She wants me to talk to the PI. What should I do?
Comments
Hire a lawyer. All communication goes through your lawyer.
Listen to lawyers advice.
The end result of all this is probably a paternity test. And then that’s a binary, either you are, or are not, the biological father. In the meantime you should be speaking with the family law attorney and having them handle all of this.
The simplest thing to do is to ask the PI to meet with you, and accept service of whatever summons or other paperwork they’ve been hired to serve to you.
Then consult with a family law attorney, who is likely to advise you to provide a DNA sample in accordance with the summons.
You could just leave it all to your attorney, and have them accept service on your behalf. It would take the task of dealing with the PI off your plate.
I don’t recommend giving this person representing themselves as a PI your home or work addresses. Arrange to meet with them at a police station lobby, if you choose to receive the summons yourself.
If she was indeed pregnant while you two were married and the child is not your’s, it is in your best interest to cooperate. You’re the putative father of the child because you were married. You want to litigate this so the paterntity test shows you aren’t the father and you get over the legal presumption that you are.
Check with the court if there’s a court date. If there is, you really need to show up. The court can default you and establish paternity and set child support if you don’t.
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Did she give birth before or after the divorce was finalized? In Wisconsin if she gave birth while you were still married, even if the divorce was in progress, you automatically get put on the birth certificate as the legal father no matter who the biological father is. If she gave birth after the divorce was finalized then she needs to go to court to establish paternity. I’m not sure why she would hire a PI when she’s going to have to go to court anyway and get a court ordered paternity test. Generally speaking even if she gets you to take a paternity test ahead of time the court will want you to get a rest from whichever service they use. She may be trying to in some way get you to sign a voluntary acknowledgement of paternity which skips the court ordered test.
Since you are in Wisconsin check CCAP for court records in her name as well as yours. It will usually say something such as “in re the paternity of”. It may not be in your name yet depending on how it is filed. Do not sign any paperwork acknowledging paternity. Let the court order a test and then cooperate with the court order when the time comes.
Get a divorce attorney and RACE to disestablish paternity of you aren’t the child’s father. Depending on when the child was born, it’s entirely possible that you are the child’s legal father and the time limit to contest paternity is running.
“The divorce courts” don’t have your address. The courts get your address from whatever filing exists. Allowing defaults is really risky because you may get your next notification in the form of a garnishment.
I think paternity cases are confidential and don’t show up in CCAP. You may need to call or go in person with your ID to find out if there’s a case against you.
I understand why everyone’s telling you to get a lawyer, but if you can’t afford one, below are some resources by county. Also, many lawyers will give you at least a free consultation.
https://www.wicourts.gov/services/public/selfhelp/docs/countylegalresources.pdf
Until you see some kind of official paperwork from the court, though, I wouldn’t do anything your ex or PI asks you to do.
If you do decide to talk to the PI, just listen. Don’t offer any information or acknowledge anything he says. Deflect with phrases like “I’ll have to ask my lawyer if it’s okay to answer that.”
Get a lawyer and do what he says. If by chance it is yours pursue the fact that she lied in out and committed perjury in court.