I have a question about a written will & child custody

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Hi my name is Steph and i have an important question so here goes...I have a 4 year old daughter from a previous relationship who has been raised by my now husband since she was 1 year old. Everything was going fine until her biological father decided to come back in to her life about a month ago. He has never even seen her (although he does pay court-ordered child support for her) and he now wants to come in to her life and be a "daddy" as he puts it. My husband and i have always known that this could happen but we still weren't prepared for it. Ok so the question is we were wondering what would happen to my daughter if anything ever happened to me...would she stay with my husband or go to her "real" father. If I were to have a Will drawn up leaving my husband as her legal guardian would that hold up in court if my ex fought it. If anyone has any answers I would be eternally grateful. Oh and i live in Massachusetts by the way if thats important. Thank you.

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I'm not a lawyer, but I think the law assumes that the rights of biological parents come before the rights of those acting in the place of parents.

No matter what you say in person or in writing, before or after your death, your child's father would get custody.

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From what I understand, the biological father would get rights to the child unless you can convince the biological father to sign over his rights in that case then he would have no legal right to her.
If you were to write a living will than if something was to happen to you the courts would have to consider your request but they are allow to make thier own decision on what would be in the best Interest of the child.
I know that it is a hard situation. The father of my children dont have anything to do with them and doesnt pay child support even though he is court ordered and if anything was to happen to me they would go to him and not my parents. So I am in the same boat.
Lets just pray for our childrens sake they are not put in that situation.

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Under the scenario you present, custody of your child would be with the natural (biological) parent, and not your husband.

Has your husband considered adopting your child? To do so would require the consent of the natural father. If your husband adopted, the natural father would no longer owe an obligation to pay support.

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If you were to write a living will than if something was to happen to you the courts would have to consider your request but they are allow to make thier own decision on what would be in the best Interest of the child.

Note: A "Living Will" (also known as a "Declaration" or "Advance Directive") is not to be confused with a "regular" Will. A "Living Will" is more similar to a Power of Attorney than a Will, and its purpose is to allow you to make decisions about life support and directs others to implement your desires in that regard. It would not be used to state your wishes for care, custody, or control of children.

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Hire an attorney and find out, for your own peace of mind. We cannot offer legal advice here as it is against this site's Terms of Service. And it would be better for you to spend the money as you will need to make out a will anyway, and may wish to make other provisions for your daughter's welfare. I take it that there was no divorce so there is no divorce lawyer you could ask for a referral? If you're unsure of where to get a lawyer, contact the local bar association (they are in the phone book) and/or ask around amongst your friends. And get the right answer the first time.

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I have a question about a written will & child custody

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