Hi! First, get yourself a good lawyer! If you do not put the fathers name on your childs birth certificate, you will have no power to collect child support, medical and dental insurance(from the father), the fathers life insurance and (the fathers) social security monies when the time comes all which this little innocent child has a right to. When your child reaches school age, many eyes will see that when asked Fathers Name, it says none. I did that when I divorced, and I looked at that and realized that I was punishing the children for the sins of their Father. Try and get away from him, it sounds like a very dysfunctional relationship. Get ALL the help you can, starting with a visit to Social Services in your area and be brave. You deserve to be loved too! "GOOD LUCK"

As to whether or not you put his name on the birth certificate is unclear. However, it sounds like this guy is just trying to scare you...relax. It would be difficult for him to simply obtain full custody. Most states, when considering which parent gets custody of the child in a dispute, apply a "best interests of the child" standard. If that sounds vague, that's because it's meant to be. Every conceivable aspect of your life can impact your child's life. Courts will often assign someone from Social Services to analyze almost everything in your life...are you gainfully employed? can you provide for the child?...do you have an arrest record?...do you have substance abuse problems?...do you have a home that is safe for a child?...do you associate with people that children should not be exposed to?...is the child comfortable around you? Some courts will even go as far as asking children (if they are old enough) which parent they prefer. These are some of the major questions that need to be answered regarding BOTH parents claiming custody. Once the court gets a recommendation from a social worker, they typically follow the recommendation. So, if you can basically provide a clean, safe, and stable environment for your child, you will get custody, and some kind of visitation arrangement will be worked out if the father contests custody. THIS STATEMENT IS INTENDED FOR GENERAL EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. THIS STATEMENT IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE AND IN NO WAY ESTABLISHES A LAWYER-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP. THIS INFORMATION MAY NOT BE RELIED UPON IN COURT FILINGS OR IN OPEN COURT. FOR LEGAL ADVICE THAT MAY BE RELIED UPON, YOU MUST CONSULT A LAWYER LICENSED TO PRACTICE IN YOUR JURISDICTION.

I don't know about the birth certificate part, but some fathers threaten to sue for custody as a tactic , not because they really want custody. Their motives could be to intimidate the mother (just for the fun of it) or to 'negotiate' a child support and access arrangement that is favourable to themselves. Your best bet in these situations is to get good legal advice from a lawyer.

I'm not POSITIVE but even if you don't put his name on the birth certificate he can petition for a paternity test and then you're no better off than you were before and if the courts think you did it out of spite, KNOWING he is the father, it doesn't look good for you. On the other hand courts don't generally (unless the mother is completely and PROVEN TO BE unfit) take a newborn from its mother, there is consideration for breastfeeding and bonding etc.

Are you and the unborn baby's father married to each other? If not, you have 85% of the controlling factors over your child. Why is he threatening? Is something missing here? Need more info.

If you want to acknowledge him as the father then the baby will have his last name and if he wants custody he can take you to court easier with you stating on the birth certificate that he is the father .But if you dont put his last name on the certificate he will have to have dna done to prove he is the father ,but be careful not to let him take the child so soon to visit or his parents cause they can hire a lawyer with out you knowing and keep the baby until the court date to try to win physical custody .You need to establish permanent physical custody of the child before you give him visitation but if you give the child his last name he can fight for joint custody or simply keep the kid if you let the child go over there .Now also if you intend to leave him and want him to help support child then with you putting his name on birth certificate he also will sign consenting he is the dad but then can easily take the child from you and try to prove you unfit .But if you dont put his name on certificate and want child support then you will have to prove he is the father which later you can do that ordering dna.Do that after you have sole custody.

He could still take you to court for custody/visitation. If he can show that you deliberately obstructed his rights to his child, that might not look good for you. Unless you have some serious problems (alcohol/drug addiction, mental illness), it would be highly unusual for a court to award custody of a newborn to its father.

ANY father threatening to sue for FULL custody of a tiny infant has PROBLEMS. Run! YOU are not a surrogate mother. You obviously made a poor choice for father, but you do not owe him a baby. I can help you with some fast facts about fatherhood in case you'd like them... Even if he's NOT been violent, he clearly has NO compunction about taking a child away from his/her mommy...a VERY bad sign. Even if he's been violent with you (yet)...he's in the inner predictive circle for trouble down the line. Look up "abusers sole custody" and you'll see that IF YOU STEP foot into American Family Courts right now, you'll NOT walk out without full custody EVER...see www.stopfamilyviolence.org =IF THESE moms didn't get FULL custody...NONE CAN! Asking for Child Support OR government aid is often the FIRST act leading to his beginning campaign for sole custody. MOST litigation involving custody is involving cases of domestic violence, and most DV is male on female (US Bureau of Justice) • In a review of parents referred for child custody evaluations by the court, domestic violence was raised in 75% of the cases. Jaffe, P.G. & Austin, G. (1995). The Impact of Witnessing Violence on Children in Custody and Visitation Disputes. Paper presented at the Fourth International Family Violence Research Conference, Durham NH (Rep. No. July 1995) …75% of parents referred by the family court for counseling because of failed mediation or continuing disputes over the care of their children, physical aggression had taken place. Johnston & Campbell, (1988), Impasses of Divorce: The dynamics and resolution of family conflict. New York, NY, US: The Free Press.

Doesn't matter either way, only Arizona grants single fathers assumed rights. He would have to file for parental rights and custody. His name on the certificate would not change that.

He is the father so you do have to put the name on the birth cert. BUT if he does take you to court chances are the mother (you) will get full custody (they nearly always do). Next time he says this to you, look him straight in the eye and say : Look. there are two choices here. We can have joint custody, or we can go to court where I will almost definately be given full custody. Your choice. Now please excuse me, this is stressing me out and I don't want to damage our baby". And then just walk away. It will so make him back off!

Well, you would be denying your child an accurate record of his or her birth, but it will haev no affect on custody.

There is no reason to not list the father on the birth certificate. The father will have parental rights/responsibilities and may try to get custody whether he is listed on the birth certificate or not.

If you do not put the father on the birth certificate then he can still take you to court but has to prove he is the father to your child first.

Not putting the father on the birth certificate, if you know who it is, and he is and has been a participative and supportive farther and will continue to be in the future is not in the best interest of the baby. Every baby has the right to know who the biological parents are! Every child needs to have a mother and father regardless if they are married or together! If society is going to continue to have "'consensual" sex then they should be bound to "mutual" respect for if nothing else the baby! How dare unwed mothers even contemplate not putting fathers name nor giving the fathers name due to personal reasons! The minute two people create a child it is no longer about what "I" want every thought and action is and should be what is best for the baby!