Who gets the kids if the parents are not married?

FAST FACTS

In South Carolina, a father has no legal rights until paternity is established. You can establish paternity by a voluntary acknowledgement of paternity signed by the mother and father.

Paternity is automatically established if a child is born during a marriage. If the husband is not the father, then the father will need to take active steps to establish paternity.

Once paternity is established, it does not automatically give the father custody or visitation rights to a child born out of wedlock.