SOUTH CAROLINA PARENTAL RIGHTS ARE EQUAL
In South Carolina each parent has equal rights concerning the minor child(ren) regardless of who has custody of the minor child(ren) unless these rights are prohibited by the court. This means each parent has equal rights to all educational records, medical records, and the right to participate in their child’s school activities. If you are the biological parent or legal parent of a child and no Order exist or the Order does not restrain your rights then you have equal rights as stated in the statute below. It is important to read an Order of the Court very carefully. As always, the best interest of the child is the paramount concern of the Court. The full language of the statue can be found below.
S.C. Code§ 63-5-30 Rights and duties of parents regarding minor children:
The mother and father are the joint natural guardians of their minor children and are equally charged with the welfare and education of their minor children and the care and management of the estates of their minor children; and the mother and father have equal power, rights, and duties, and neither parent has any right paramount to the right of the other concerning the custody of the minor or the control of the services or the earnings of the minor or any other matter affecting the minor. Each parent, whether the custodial or noncustodial parent of the child, has equal access and the same right to obtain all educational records and medical records of their minor children and the right to participate in their children’s school activities unless prohibited by order of the court. Neither parent shall forcibly take a child from the guardianship of the parent legally entitled to custody of the child.
On the other hand if you are a father who has a child with a women of which you are not married you must sue for your parental rights. Put another way, you don’t have rights unless and until you sue for them and are granted them by the Court. It is likely important that you take legal action as soon as possible. The Responsible Father Registry gives a man who has fathered a child with a woman to whom he is not married to the right to be notified when an adoption or a termination of parental rights action occurs.
If you are serious about your love for parental rights it might be time to call Alex Kornfeld at 864-335-9990.
