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Family Law-Putative Father Denied Custody Under Restrictive Interpretation Of His Rights

University of Richmond Law Review

Under the common law, the illegitimate child was deemed nullius filius, no man's son. However, our courts have gradually granted the illegitimate substantially the same rights as those afforded the legitimate child. Unlike the child, the putative father, who originally was free from any obligation to his offspring, has encountered the same duties as the father of a legitimate child notwithstanding the fact that he is afforded few of the parental rights.