entrapment

[john.po]

my exgirlfriend told me she couldn't have children then fell pregnant after 4 weeks. as soon as she was pregnant she got nasty and told me my house was as good as hers and she was going to kick me out. I ended the relationship before my son was born and told her parents to come and get her. after the birth she wouldn't let me see him and forced me through court for access. now i get 3 hours a week with him which is not enough and must pay �42 a week maintenance which i'm struggling to meet. she hasn't put my name on the birth certificate and refuses to give him my surname. to start with i thought she loved me but all she was after was my house and my money and me to have nothing to do with him. can i sue her for entrapment.

[lady_p_gold]

I am not a lawyer but looking at this objectively there are two things that spring to mind and maybe someone with legal knowledge will reply. Firstly do we have something called 'entrapment' which you could sue for ?? Secondly .. how could you prove it. It relies on conversations that you had between you and it will be your word against hers. She could say that you knew perfectly well she could have children. So ... I think you would have a job to sue her for anything. All you can do is your best until the child is 18 and then hope that you can form a relationship without her interference, but it does sound as if you have been dealt a very unlucky hand with this lady, and what a shame for your son. Try not to give up as one day when he is older he will be glad that you perservered.

[Sweet cheeks]

What a bummer! I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you can do legally, but as said above, PLEASE don't give up on your son, he may really need you one day!

[trotsky]

ive had it done to me too john ,believe me it gets easier to live with , so get out there and enjoy the rest of your life,

[mimififi]

You can apply to have your name put on the birth certificate. Enquire at the registry office as to how to do this.

Also, if you can prove hardship, then you may be able to appeal against the �42 a week if it really is a struggle for you.

Stick with the 3 hours. I know it sucks, but DO NOT miss a single one. You could apply to the courts for a residency order and make sure you apply for parental responsibility as you may not automatically have this. It is crucial for you have this, if then she does not include you on things like, schools, health issues, etc etc, you can go back to court to get things sorted out. An excellent publication is I believe, "Understanding the children's act" I don't have the ISBN handy but you should be able to Amazon for it. You can reapply through the court also for additional contact if you don't feel it's working and also weekend contact, mostly it's every 2nd weekend that you would be entitled to. Do they still do Legal aid? Would you be entitled to it? You could ask your CAb about this.

I don't know about entrapment, but what would be the point in suing her. You need to keep an amicable if frosty relationship with her for the sake of your son. It would be bad form for him to have every pick up and drop off a source of anxiety for him. You are well out of it with her, but it's not a case of 'if your son needs you', he does need you, you are his dad and he needs you now. He needs you to be dependable and charitable, and although you don't love her, he does. Whereas that doesn't give her license to walk all over you, you need to be the better person and allow him to love both his parents equally without feeling guilty to her for loving you and guilty to you for loving her.

Hope it improves for you. My thoughts are with you.