Recent pop culture news articles have been circulating regarding ex-Nirvana and current Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl announcing that he has had a baby daughter outside of his marriage with his current spouse with whom he shares (3) children. These events, relevant persons, and children are all in the State of California, so this matter will most likely fall under the standards of California law.
His newest daughter with a woman he’s not married to will likely impact his marriage generally but also has implications in terms of his rights as a father to a child outside of marriage, how that child may impact child support obligations, and calculations involving his children within the marriage as well.
Briefly, California is a “no-fault” divorce state so this event in and of itself does not necessarily create grounds for a divorce or any additional recourse of liability for Mr. Grohl or his wife. No fault divorce conceptually and overly simplified essentially means that the Court will not consider things like extramarital affairs (E.g., this instance) or otherwise “punish” a spouse for their actions in terms of how the community’s division, spousal support, debts, or child custody and visitation are concerned upon divorce. There are some limited exceptions to this standard where there has been abuse, breaches of fiduciary duty, nullity, and to an extent and based on the specifics of that case, child custody/visitation.
Unmarried Fathers & Their Parental Rights:
While a father’s rights to a child born out of wedlock are the same as a father’s rights to a child that is born within wedlock, there’s an important step that must occur for that father before being able to have the ability to assert those rights. In California, the law presumes that when a child is born into a marriage, both spouses are the child’s legal parents, even if the father is not biologically related to the child. However, if a child is born outside of marriage, this presumption does not exist, and the father then must move to establish parentage over that child.
A birth certificate alone does not establish parentage for an unmarried father or couple. So, the Father must either file a Petition to Establish Parentage with the Court to establish his parental rights and, if the mother and father can agree and coordinate, they can execute a Voluntary Declaration of Paternity, which is a separate document from the birth certificate and will allow for the establishment of the Father’s parentage over that child without the need for litigation and filing a Petition to Establish Parentage.
In Dave Grohl’s situation presently, he’ll need to either execute a Voluntary Declaration of Paternity for his new out-of-wedlock daughter with her mother and file a Petition to Establish Parentage and succeed with that petition, before being able to actualize his parental rights as a father in California.
How Does Dave’s Having a Child Outside of Marriage Potentially Impact Child Support:
Assuming the above has all occurred and Dave has established his parental rights for his daughter, this may impact any future support orders issued in the scenario where he stays married to his existing spouse and his existing spouse seeks to divorce him. In the event of a divorce, he will likely have a child support obligation because of his earning capacity and income to his children from his prior marriage. He will also have a concurrent obligation for support under the same basis as his daughter out of wedlock. Child support amounts are calculated based on reviewing the parents’ monthly income and the amount of timeshare the parents have with the applicable children.
This can include numerous factors of analysis and is not always directly straightforward but those are the basis tenants. Due to Dave’s ostensibly high earning capacity and likely high monthly income earnings compared to his spouses, the assumption would be that he is the more likely parent in both scenarios to be the paying party for any child support sums ordered by the Court. California Courts will be making support orders of this type, considering other support obligations and the potential impacts of those prior orders in making any new order.
This can include existing spousal support and child support obligations to a separate ex-spouse, and children from a now-dissolved marriage for example. In Dave’s present situation, this will likely be a potential consideration for the Court in terms of any child support order for her newborn daughter. However, what Dave will not be able to do if he attempts to do so, is to limit or otherwise avoid child support obligations to all children in favor of a specific child or set of children. The Court would need to review the information in front of it and between the funds available to pay support and how to allocate to the various children involved.
Conclusion:
Cases involving unwed parties, particularly unwed fathers where parentage may need to be established, child support, and divorce can come with some unique challenges and are often case and fact-specific in terms of the potential outcomes and applicable options for the various parties involved. If you are a parent with one or more of these issues, seeking legal counsel from an attorney experienced in California family law is essential. They can provide guidance in navigating the litigation process and what options are available to you to achieve the best possible outcomes available under the specifics of your situation and case.