How to Become a Legal Parent

The parts of this article that cover parentage of children conceived by intercourse call the parties mother and father because Michigan laws use those terms. If you or the other parent have different gender identities and your child was conceived through intercourse, this section still applies to you.

Signing an Affidavit of Parentage

An Affidavit of Parentage (AOP) is a form both parents can sign so the father can become a legal parent. Signing it is voluntary. This means a parent can choose if they want to sign it or not.

If both parents choose to sign an Affidavit of Parentage, they must sign in front of a qualified witness or a notary. If they fill out the Affidavit at the hospital, there will be a qualified witness available. A qualified witness is an employee of one of the following: a hospital, publicly-funded or licensed health clinic, pediatric office, Friend of the Court, Prosecuting Attorney, court, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, county health agency, county records department, Head Start program, local social services provider, county jail, or state prison. If they decide to fill out the Affidavit of Parentage after leaving the hospital, it is often easier to find a notary than a qualified witness. You can usually find a notary at a bank or credit union.

The parents can sign the Affidavit at the same time or at different times. After each parent signs and the qualified witness or notary signs, the Affidavit must be filed with the State. Keep reading to learn more about completing the Affidavit.

Signing the Affidavit at the Hospital

Parents often sign the Affidavit of Parentage at the hospital after the child is born.

If parents give the completed Affidavit to hospital staff before the birth certificate is prepared and filed, the birth certificate will include the names of both parents. Hospital staff will send the Affidavit and the original birth certificate to the local registrar. Then the registrar will send the Affidavit to the State for final filing.

Sometimes parents don’t remember signing an AOP because of all the other hospital paperwork. But if the father’s name is on the original birth certificate, there is probably an Affidavit of Parentage. It is a good idea for parents to order a copy of the AOP for their own records in case they need to prove parentage.

Signing the Affidavit after Leaving the Hospital

If parents do not sign an Affidavit of Parentage while they are at the hospital, they can do it later. Parents can finish the AOP and file it with the State at any time during the child’s life. The Affidavit must be signed by both parents in front of a qualified witness or notary. It is usually easier to find a notary. Most banks or credit unions have a notary.

One of the parents must file the Affidavit with the State. The Affidavit form has instructions for doing this. You will probably also want to change the birth certificate to add the father’s name. To do both of these things, mail the completed Affidavit and a completed Application to Add a Parent on a Michigan Birth Record to:

Vital Records Changes
PO Box 30721
Lansing, MI 48909

It is important to include the fee listed on the Application to Add a Parent on a Michigan Birth Record. If you are asking for certified copies of the birth certificate and/or rush processing of the application, also include the fees listed for those requests.

Getting a Court Order

The other way for a genetic father to become a legal father when the mother is unmarried is to get a court order called an Order of Filiation. This order will also include custody, parenting time, and child support. To get this order, you can either:

• Hire a lawyer to file a case for you, or

• Apply for child support services so the Friend of the Court or Prosecuting Attorney will file a case.

In general, free legal aid lawyers are not available to help establish parentage. But if you apply for child support services, either the prosecuting attorney’s office (PA) or the Friend of the Court (FOC) will file a case to establish parentage and child support. Or in some courts, the lawyer may be employed or contracted by the county or with MDHHS. To simplify, this article will refer to lawyers who do this work as the PA or the FOC.

If your case goes to the PA’s office, this does not mean that you or the other parent are in trouble or being charged with a crime. This type of case is not part of the PA’s criminal case work.

A lawyer from the PA or FOC does not represent the mother or the alleged father. Instead, the lawyer is acting for the State. They will file the case and help move it forward so parentage and support are established, but they can’t advocate for either parent on the issues of custody or parenting time.

To apply for child support services, you can either apply online or mail the completed application to the Office of Child Support. Then the Office of Child Support will share your application with the local PA or FOC. The PA or FOC will start a court case by filing a Complaint in circuit court naming the alleged father. The court will issue another document called a Summons. The Summons tells the defendant how long they have to file a written Answer with the court and send a copy to the plaintiff.

If the defendant (usually the alleged father) does not file a written Answer on time, the court can enter a default order naming them as a legal parent. If the defendant files a written Answer to the Complaint, the parties may agree to an order naming the alleged father as a legal parent. Or if the defendant disagrees, then the PA or FOC may file and serve both parties with a notice requiring the mother, alleged father, and child to do genetic testing. If one of the parties does not show up for testing, then the PA or FOC may ask the court to require the parties to go to genetic testing. Testing must be done at a place accredited by a nationally recognized scientific organization, such as the American Association of Blood Banks.

After genetic testing, there will be a two-part report from the lab: the results and the summary report. The results and report will be sent to the mother and the alleged father. The parties will have 14 days to file an objection to the results or summary report. This type of objection is hard to make. If you want to object, you may need to talk to a lawyer.

If there is no valid objection and the genetic testing shows that the probability of being a parent is 99% or higher, the judge will find that the alleged father is a legal parent. After that, the judge will enter an Order of Filiation. This is a court order establishing the parentage of the genetic father.

The order of filiation will also include sections on child support, parenting time, and custody. If the parents agree on custody and parenting time, the order will include their agreement. If the parents disagree about custody and parenting time, the order will establish temporary custody and parenting time, and child support. The court may also enter an order sending the parents to the Friend of the Court for a report and recommendation on parenting time, custody, and child support. When this happens, there could be a FOC investigation, where the FOC gathers information from both parties and makes a recommendation to the judge about what should be ordered. Or the parents could participate in FOC alternative dispute resolution (ADR), such as mediation. To learn more, read Friend of the Court Overview.

There can be advantages to finding a lawyer to represent you in a case to establish parentage, custody, parenting time, and child support. One advantage is that you will likely get a court order faster than if you apply for support services. Also, if you and the other party do not agree on custody and parenting time, having a lawyer to present evidence and legal arguments may give you a better chance of getting custody and parenting time arrangements that you want.

To find a lawyer, you can use the State Bar of Michigan Legal Resource and Referral Center page. You may want to apply to the Modest Means Program if you want to find a family lawyer charging reduced fees. You could also consider hiring a lawyer for part of your case instead of the whole thing. This is called limited scope representation. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer. To find a limited scope lawyer, follow this link to the State Bar of Michigan lawyer directory. This link lists lawyers who offer limited scope representation. You can narrow the results to lawyers in your area by typing in your county, city, or zip code at the top of the page. You can also narrow the results by topic by entering the kind of lawyer you need at the top of the page.

Assisted reproduction is a way to become pregnant that is not sexual intercourse. It includes:

• Donor insemination
• Sperm or egg donation
• Embryo donation
• In vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer
• Intracytoplasmic sperm injection
• Assisted reproductive technology

When a child is conceived by AR, there is a birthing parent and often another intended parent. A birthing parent is automatically a legal parent. An intended parent is a person who shows an intent to be legally bound as a parent of a child conceived by assisted reproduction. The birthing parent is an intended parent. The other intended parent can be married to the birthing parent, but they do not have to be. They can become a legal parent without being married. A donor (someone who provides sperm or eggs for assisted reproduction) is not a parent of a child conceived by assisted reproduction. 

Intended Parent Married to Birthing Parent

If the intended parent and the birthing parent are (or were) married when their child was born or conceived, both spouses are legal parents because of their marriage. One change made by ARSPA is that spouses are now presumed to be the legal parent of a child born during a marriage regardless of the gender of the spouses. But it is best to take extra steps to protect the legal parentage of the intended parent under one (or more) of the options under ARSPA.

Before the new law, some intended parents got an adoption order to protect their parentage. This process is often called confirmatory adoption or stepparent adoption. An adoption order is still valid if you have one. But the new law provides two different ways to establish parentage for the intended parent without pursuing an adoption. 

Both new options are based on the consent (agreement) between the intended parent and the birthing parent. The parents can join together to complete and file an Affidavit of Parentage, and/or jointly petition the court to get a Judgment of Parentage naming the intended parent as a legal parent of the child. Parents can get a Judgment of Parentage from the court before their child is born so the intended parent’s name can go on the birth certificate right away. An AOP can only be completed after a child is born.

It is important to go beyond the birth certificate and protect your parentage with an Affidavit and/or a Judgment of Parentage. This is especially true if you have plans to move or even travel with your child(ren) in another state. Another state will respect an Affidavit of Parentage or a Judgment of Parentage as proof of legal parentage, while a birth certificate alone may not be enough. Also, in case of divorce, having an Affidavit and/or a Judgment of Parentage will protect the parental rights of the intended parent. The Judgment will also protect the right of the child to receive support from the intended parent. Legal experts recommend completing an Affidavit of Parentage and getting a Judgment of Parentage for added protection. Learn more below.

Important! Parents can file a completed Affidavit of Parentage at any time during a child’s life. If your child is older than 18, you can still file an Affidavit of Parentage. For a child under 18, parents can file an Affidavit of Parentage and pursue a Judgment of Parentage.

Intended Parent not Married to Birthing Parent 

If the intended parent and the birthing parent were not married to each other when their child was born or conceived, they need to take steps so the intended parent can become a legal parent. Before April 2, 2025, the only people who could sign an Affidavit of Parentage were an unmarried woman and a man who voluntarily stated that he believed he was the genetic father of the child. Unmarried parents had no option to get a court order to recognize the non-genetic parent as the child’s legal parent. But the new law allows an unmarried intended parent to establish legal parentage of a child conceived by AR using an Affidavit of Parentage, and to further protect their parentage by getting a Judgment of Parentage. 

Establishing parentage gives the intended parent parental rights in Michigan, and it will protect your parental rights if you decide to move out of state or travel out of state with your child(ren). Another state will respect an Affidavit of Parentage or a Judgment of Parentage as proof of legal parentage, while a birth certificate alone may not be enough. 

Also, if the relationship between the birthing parent and intended parent breaks down, having an Affidavit and/or a judgment will protect the parental rights of the intended parent, and protect the right of the child to receive support from the intended parent. Legal experts recommend completing an Affidavit of Parentage and getting a Judgment of Parentage for added protection. Learn more below.

Important! Parents can file a completed Affidavit of Parentage at any time during a child’s life. If your child is older than 18, you can still file an Affidavit of Parentage. For a child under 18, parents can file an Affidavit of Parentage and pursue a Judgment of Parentage.

Signing an Affidavit of Parentage

An Affidavit of Parentage (AOP) is an official form filed with the State of Michigan where the birthing parent and the intended parent both agree that the intended parent is a parent of their child. It is a form that can be used to:

• Establish the parentage of a non-birthing parent who was not married to the birthing parent when their child was born or conceived, or
• Protect the parentage of a non-birthing parent who was married to the birthing parent when the child was born or conceived.

An Affidavit of Parentage can be used for either of these purposes at any time during a child’s life. If you weren’t able to have your parentage recognized legally and your child is older than 18, you can complete and file an Affidavit of Parentage. For older children who are still under the age of 18, parents can file an Affidavit of Parentage and get a Judgment of Parentage.

The Affidavit of Parentage can also be the written record of the parent’s agreement to co-parent for the purpose of later getting a Judgment of Parentage from the court.

When parents sign an Affidavit of Parentage, they agree to the following in case they separate:

• Either parent may file a case at their local family court for custody and parenting time.

• Both parents will be notified if one parent wants the child to be adopted by someone else.

• Both parents must support their child. If the court orders child support, parents must follow the order.

Signing an Affidavit of Parentage (AOP) is voluntary. This means parents can choose if they want to sign it or not. An AOP can only be signed by both parents after the child’s birth. If both parents choose to sign an Affidavit of Parentage, they must sign in front of a qualified witness or a notary. If they fill out the Affidavit at the hospital, there will be a qualified witness available. A qualified witness is an employee of one of the following: a hospital, publicly funded or licensed health clinic, pediatric office, Friend of the Court, Prosecuting Attorney, court, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, county health agency, county records department, Head Start program, local social services provider, county jail, or state prison. If they decide to fill out the Affidavit of Parentage after leaving the hospital, it is often easier to find a notary. You can usually find a notary at a bank or credit union.

The parents can sign the Affidavit together or at different times. After each parent signs and the qualified witness or notary signs, the Affidavit must be filed with the Central Paternity Registry. Keep reading to learn more.

Signing the Affidavit at the Hospital 

Parents often sign the Affidavit of Parentage at the hospital after the child is born. If parents give the completed Affidavit to hospital staff before the birth certificate is prepared and filed, the birth certificate will include the non-birthing parent. Hospital staff will send the Affidavit and the original birth certificate to the local registrar. Then the registrar will send the Affidavit to the State for final filing.

Signing the Affidavit after Leaving the Hospital

If parents do not sign an Affidavit of Parentage while they are at the hospital, they can still do it later. The Affidavit must be signed by both parents in front of a qualified witness or notary. It is often easier to find a notary. You can usually find a notary at a bank or credit union.

One of the parents must file the Affidavit with the State. You will probably also want to change the birth certificate to add the name of the non-birthing parent. To do both of these things, mail the completed Affidavit and a completed Application to Add a Parent on a Michigan Birth Record to:    

Vital Records Changes
PO Box 30721
Lansing, MI 48909

It is important to include the application fee listed on the Application to Add a Parent on a Michigan Birth Record. If you are asking for certified copies of the birth certificate and/or rush processing of the application, also include the fees listed for those requests.

Getting a Judgment of Parentage (Court Order)

A Judgment of Parentage is a court order that names both the birthing parent and the intended parent as a child’s parents. You can get a Judgment of Parentage so the intended parent can become a legal parent, or as an extra layer of protection if parentage was already established by marriage or by Affidavit of Parentage. Unlike the AOP, a Judgment of Parentage can be issued before the child's birth. The intended parents can ask the court to determine that the intended parent is the legal parent of the child so that parental rights are in place when the child is born.

Either the intended parent or the parent who gave birth (or will give birth) can file a case asking the court to enter a Judgment of Parentage. They can file the case either before or after the child’s birth. Whoever files the case must show the judge that the intended parent agreed to be a parent of the child. Having an Affidavit of Parentage can be proof they agreed, which is helpful because the AOP is a standard government form that does not require the parties to hire a lawyer to make a written agreement for them. But without an AOP or another written record, parents can use other types of evidence to show they agreed before conception that they would both be parents of the child. For example, they can testify in court.

A judge can also find that a person agreed to be a child’s parent if they lived in the same household as the child and openly behaved like the child was theirs for the first two years of the child’s life. If the parent left the home for a short time and then returned during those first two years, they can still be considered to be living in the same household as the child.

To ask for a Judgment of Parentage, you will need to file a complaint in the circuit court of the county where the child lives, was born, or will be born, or where a parent or intended parent lives. Right now there are no forms available for this, so you would need to find a lawyer to make a complaint and an order for you. 

To find a lawyer, you can use the State Bar of Michigan Legal Resource and Referral Center page. You may want to apply to the Modest Means Program if you want to find a family lawyer charging reduced fees. You could also consider hiring a lawyer for part of your case instead of the whole thing. This is called limited scope representation. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer. To find a limited scope lawyer, follow this link to the State Bar of Michigan lawyer directory. This link lists lawyers who offer limited scope representation. You can narrow the results to lawyers in your area by typing in your county, city, or zip code at the top of the page. You can also narrow the results by topic by entering the kind of lawyer you need at the top of the page.

Can I Still Get an Affidavit of Parentage or Judgment of Parentage if My Relationship with the Other Parent Ended?

Yes. This will be easiest if the other parent agrees to help establish parentage by Affidavit of Parentage and/or Judgment of Parentage. If the other parent does not agree, you can still get a Judgment of Parentage if you have proof that would allow a judge to find that there was an agreement to coparent. 

If you have divorced or separated from the other parent, and you want to complete and file an Affidavit of Parentage or other written record of consent, you can as long as the other parent is willing to sign it. If they are unwilling, then you can still file a complaint in court asking for a Judgment of Parentage. Right now there are no forms available for this process, so you would need to find a lawyer to help you.

Whoever files the case must show the judge that the intended parent agreed to be a parent of the child. If there is no Affidavit of Parentage or other written agreement, their consent can be shown by evidence that the birthing parent and intended parent agreed before conception that they would both be parents of the child.

A court can also find that a person agreed to be a child’s parent if they lived in the same household as the child and openly behaved like the child was theirs for the first two years of the child’s life. If the parent left the home for a short time and then returned during those first two years, they can still be considered to be living in the same household as the child.

To find a lawyer, you can use the State Bar of Michigan Legal Resource and Referral Center page. You may want to apply to the Modest Means Program if you want to find a family lawyer charging reduced fees. You could also consider hiring a lawyer for part of your case instead of the whole thing. This is called limited scope representation. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer. To find a limited scope lawyer, follow this link to the State Bar of Michigan lawyer directory. This link lists lawyers who offer limited scope representation. You can narrow the results to lawyers in your area by typing in your county, city, or zip code at the top of the page. You can also narrow the results by topic by entering the kind of lawyer you need at the top of the page.

A surrogacy agreement is an agreement between one or more intended parents and a surrogate. In the agreement, a surrogate (a person who is not an intended parent) agrees to become pregnant through assisted reproduction. The agreement provides that each intended parent is a parent of a child conceived under the agreement. All parties must be represented by lawyers, and the intended parents must pay the costs of the lawyer for the surrogate. All lawyers involved must be licensed to practice law in Michigan.

The surrogate and intended parent(s) must each:

• Be at least 21,
• Complete a mental health consultation,
• Be represented independently by a lawyer of their choice through negotiating the agreement, executing the agreement, and during the agreement about the terms of the surrogacy agreement and its potential legal consequences.

The lawyers will write a surrogacy agreement that will need to be agreed to and signed by each party in front of a notary. There are many requirements for a legally valid surrogacy agreement. Some of these requirements are:

• The surrogate and the surrogate’s spouse or former spouse, if any, must have no claim to parentage of a child conceived by assisted reproduction under the agreement.
• The surrogate will be allowed to make all health and welfare decisions regarding the surrogate and the pregnancy.
• The intended parent(s) will cover the agreed-on expenses of the surrogate, the assisted reproduction expenses, and medical expenses for the surrogate and the child.

There are many other requirements for a surrogacy contract to be valid and legally enforceable. 

To learn more, you can use the State Bar of Michigan Legal Resource and Referral Center page to find a lawyer.

Before the Assisted Reproduction and Surrogacy Parentage Act (ARSPA), some parents of children conceived through assisted reproduction got an adoption order to protect their parentage (sometimes called a confirmatory adoption). Adoption orders are still in effect for those who have them, but now parentage can be established and protected through an Affidavit of Parentage or a Judgment of Parentage. Read "Becoming a Legal Parent of a Child Conceived by Assisted Reproduction (Not Surrogacy)" to learn more. 

If a single parent of a child conceived by AR marries someone they were not involved with at the time of the child’s conception or birth, the spouses may use a stepparent adoption so the new spouse of the legal parent can also become a legal parent. Because a “donor” is not a parent, there is no need to terminate the parental rights of the donor in order to complete a stepparent adoption of a child conceived by AR.

If a child was conceived by intercourse, a new spouse of the child’s parent may adopt the child only if the parental rights of the other biological parent are terminated first.

If you need help with a different type of adoption, you can use the State Bar of Michigan Legal Resource and Referral Center page to find a lawyer. You may want to apply to the Modest Means Program if you want to find a family lawyer charging reduced fees. You could also consider hiring a lawyer for part of your case instead of the whole thing. This is called limited scope representation. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer. To find a limited scope lawyer, follow this link to the State Bar of Michigan lawyer directory. This link lists lawyers who offer limited scope representation. You can narrow the results to lawyers in your area by typing in your county, city, or zip code at the top of the page. You can also narrow the results by topic by entering the kind of lawyer you need at the top of the page.