Looking for a lawyer to file for legitimization

[GATOR420]

Hello all,

 

I am looking for any recommendations on a lawyer for legitimization purposes of my son. Some important points I'd mention are:

 

1. I am the named father on the birth certificate already.

2. The mother and I have been together for the past 5 years, my son is now 18 months old. 

3. We do not plan to get married. 

4. She agrees/accepts and is willing to go to court and attest that I am the father. 

5. My son is registered on the house book in Amnat Charoen, although born in Bangkok. (I presume the jurisdiction for the case will be in that province and not in Bangkok)

 

There will be no complications in this case such as the mother contesting, requiring a paternity test, etc and so forth. We are simply looking to legitimize him in the eyes of the law. 

 

As this is just a matter of filling out the documentation and filing the case with the court, I'm really just looking for the cheapest lawyer option available. I don't need a fancy high profile lawyer to handle the mother contesting this case. If you know of a cheap lawyer who can handle a simple case filing such as this, please kindly let me know here or by PM. I really just don't want to pay more more than I have to for filling out some paperwork and submitting it to the court. 

[Rally123]

You don't need to see a lawyer AFAIA because you are named on the birth certificate. Job done. But because you aren't married, some countries may require a DNA test done prior to issuing a passport. Good luck.

[GATOR420]

23 minutes ago, Rally123 said:

You don't need to see a lawyer AFAIA because you are named on the birth certificate. Job done. But because you aren't married, some countries may require a DNA test done prior to issuing a passport. Good luck.

Thank you for your reply. It is my understanding that even though I am the named father on the birth certificate, I do not have legal rights under the law because we are not married. If this is not correct, which I would be delighted to hear, that would save me a lot of extra time and effort. However, I have talked to one lawyer already who has confirmed that the legitimization step was necessary in order for me to have legal rights.

[Rally123]

If the child's mother is in agreement that you are the father all you need is to go to her local Amphur and sign a  document to that effect.

 

 

Quote

 

What Is The Visitor’s Rights And Obligations To The Child?

In Thailand, being the biological father of a child does not confer any parental rights even if the father is named on the birth certificate. The father can only be deem the legitimate parent of the child in three ways. The first way is if the father and the mother are legally married at the time of the child’s birth or became legally married, the husband is deemed the legitimate parent. The second and third way for a father to legitimize their parental rights is through registration with the local amphur with the mother’s consent or through a court judgment.

If the visitor believes that he may be the biological father and wants parental rights but does not want to get married, he has two options. He can contact the Thai mother and ask if the mother will consent to the legitimization. If the mother agrees that that visitor is the father, the father can submit a legitimization with local amphur where the child was born. The registrar will notify the mother of the child of the father’s application. The mother will have 60 days to consent to the application. After 60 days, the mother will be presumed to not have consented.

If the mother has not consented to the legitimization, the potential father will have to file a petition for legitimation with the local family court. The mother of the child will have to be served with notice of the petition. After the mother has been served, the court will have a hearing on the evidence. The court can only grant legitimization of the patterning for one of the seven following reasons (Section 1555 of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code?

 

 

[happylarry]

The lawyer you spoke with is correct, you definately have to go through the court to get a child of that age legitamised. Theoretically you may be able to do it at an amphur but you will not find one anywhere that will be willing to do it until the child is at least seven years old and even then many amphurs will refuse.

HL

[cooked]

"In my experience..." 

... nobody is contesting your case so no need for a DNA test.

...two court visits with a Thai speaker, possibly three depending on what documents the Amphur requires.

However the legal documents that our lawyer prepared look complicated to me, I don't think anyone without experience could get them done.

We paid 3 x ฿15 000 initially and going back for an additional document that the Amphur required was ฿2000.-

I believe the Amphur did not charge a fee.

Other people will have had different experiences. Don't listen to the old dears haunting the courtroom antechambers telling you tales.

 

[GATOR420]

On 6/23/2018 at 9:18 AM, cooked said:

"In my experience..." 

... nobody is contesting your case so no need for a DNA test.

...two court visits with a Thai speaker, possibly three depending on what documents the Amphur requires.

However the legal documents that our lawyer prepared look complicated to me, I don't think anyone without experience could get them done.

We paid 3 x ฿15 000 initially and going back for an additional document that the Amphur required was ฿2000.-

I believe the Amphur did not charge a fee.

Other people will have had different experiences. Don't listen to the old dears haunting the courtroom antechambers telling you tales.

Thank you for your reply. Can you tell me if you could do it where they were born, or if you have to go to where they are registered on the house book? Did you have this done in Bangkok or elsewhere? 

[Monomial]

 

On 6/25/2018 at 4:52 AM, GATOR420 said:

Thank you for your reply. Can you tell me if you could do it where they were born, or if you have to go to where they are registered on the house book? Did you have this done in Bangkok or elsewhere? 

 

The legalization needs to be done in the district where the child is registered. As the lawyer will need to appear with you and the mother in court, you will need to find one in Amnat Charoen.

[Xaos]

Im in ur shoes. Want to sort it out so i get 1 year visa extension.

My kid got 2 passports tho. Was not a prob.

Thank you for your reply. It is my understanding that even though I am the named father on the birth certificate, I do not have legal rights under the law because we are not married. If this is not correct, which I would be delighted to hear, that would save me a lot of extra time and effort. However, I have talked to one lawyer already who has confirmed that the legitimization step was necessary in order for me to have legal rights.

[Xaos]

"In my experience..." 
... nobody is contesting your case so no need for a DNA test.
...two court visits with a Thai speaker, possibly three depending on what documents the Amphur requires.
However the legal documents that our lawyer prepared look complicated to me, I don't think anyone without experience could get them done.
We paid 3 x ฿15 000 initially and going back for an additional document that the Amphur required was ฿2000.-
I believe the Amphur did not charge a fee.
Other people will have had different experiences. Don't listen to the old dears haunting the courtroom antechambers telling you tales.
 

3x15k thats ripp off

Heres threads and ppl paid from 15k to 25k