Paternity Fraud

Paternity fraud refers to a mother who names one man as the biological father of her child or children when she suspects or knows that he is not the father. In other cases, the mother may intentionally avoid naming the father on the birth certificate. This behavior is illegal in the United States and is punishable in a court of law; however, there are varying laws, clauses, and restrictions by state. It is not considered a criminal offense if the mother happens to be unaware of who the biological father is at the time that the birth certificate is signed.

Legal Background

In the majority of U.S. jurisdictions, children that are born during a marriage are the physical and legal responsibility of the husband. Unfortunately, for some men, that means an obligation to pay child support for children who are not biologically theirs. For non-married couples, a single man can also be named as the biological father. However, this process is not always dependent on a paternity test. And in many cases, once the mother names the father, legally changing paternity is a lengthy and difficult process. Even then, in cases where the mother is suspected of paternity fraud it can be hard to prove, based on the assumption that she may not have known who the father was when the certificate was signed. There is currently a push for paternity fraud laws in states that do not already have them, which would allow men to circumvent paternity through DNA tests. Men who can prove that a child is not biologically theirs do not have to pay child support. In addition, some groups are pushing for a law that would make DNA testing mandatory for all births among non-married couples.

Affected Groups

The victims of paternity fraud are men. Most of the men who have spoken up against paternity fraud currently pay child support for children that are not biologically theirs. While this problem does not affect an exceedingly large percentage of the population, it is still emotionally and financially straining for those who are affected. They may continue to pay hundreds of dollars per month for children who they know are not their own. However, advocates for children’s rights argue that the current laws ensure that financial and emotional support for children is not suddenly withdrawn. These laws were also part of an effort to ensure that single mothers do not have to rely on the welfare system to support their children. Single mothers are asked to name a father so that there are two sources of financial support when a child is born.

Challenges

Paternity fraud presents many challenges to the legal system. Firstly, children require financial support, which usually falls on two parents, whether or not those parents are married or unmarried. When a mother names the father on a child’s birth certificate, she usually does so out of necessity. It may be difficult to later prove in court that she chose one man to be the father among others for a given reason, in spite of knowing or suspecting that he was not the father. Finally, DNA paternity tests are not infallible, a testing center that claims a 99% accuracy rate is wrong one time for every one hundred tests.