Paternity Testing Corporation

There are a wide variety of reasons to have paternity testing done. Many tests are performed on newborns. Sometimes there is more than one candidate for fatherhood. Sometimes the mother knows who the father is, but the father wants to be sure. In other cases the parties may know who the father is, but need to have official proof. This can happen if the parties were not married at or near the time of the child's birth. Official proof may be required for many reasons including health insurance, Social Security benefits, child support, child custody, visitation, or inheritance

Sometimes a child is born to a married couple, but the couple have been separated a long time. In that situation the mother and her husband know that the child is not the husband's biological child, but they may need to prove it for purposes of a divorce or other legal matter.

Sometimes the mother of a child decides that she does not want the father to see the child or be a part of the child's life. If the parents of the child were not married, the alleged father may need to bring a lawsuit and prove paternity in order to force the mother to let him see the child or to have regular visitation or custody.

Paternal grandparents often initiate a paternity test with the cooperation of their son (the presumed father) and the mother. The grandparents may be concerned that since their son and the mother are not married, the grandparents do not want to lose their connection with the grandchild if the mother and father subsequently break up (consult an attorney regarding any legal rights that grandparents may have under the laws of your state).

Adoptions often involve paternity tests. By proving who the biological father of the child is before the adoption, the adoptive parents are able to be certain that the true biological father has given his consent to the adoption. Without the paternity test, the adoptive parents may worry that the true biological father could be someone else, and that he might later challenge the adoption.

There are also medical reasons to have a paternity test. It may be important to the child's healthcare to know the health history of the child's biological parents and their extended families. For example, knowledge of family health history can be important in diagnosing a child's current medical condition or may suggest early screening for certain types of hereditary disease.

Adults sometimes want testing to confirm who their parents are. This can be true if an adult was adopted or abandoned as a child. It can also occur if an adult obtains information suggesting that his or her parent is not the person they always believed it was. We often receive calls from adults who have located a possible biological parent or sibling, and want to be tested in order to verify their relationship.

We often hear from adults who are trying to determine their parentage long after the parents have died. We reconstruct as much of the family as possible by testing available relatives. Prior to testing we discuss how likely it is, with the relatives available for testing, that we will be able to obtain a meaningful result from testing.

Immigration sometimes requires paternity or maternity testing (maternity testing determines the biological mother of the child). In order for relatives to come to this country it is sometimes necessary to establish that they are truly biological relatives. Often one member of a family comes to the United States and when financially able then requests permission for other family members to come here. A genetic test is performed to confirm that the new immigrant is who they claim they are.

Whatever the reason for the paternity test, it is important to know that the results are reliable. You are paying for a reliable answer and you should be confident when the test is complete that the answer you are given is correct.

For example, it sometimes happens in the heat of an argument that a mother will tell a presumed father for the first time that he is not really the child's father. Some men pursue a paternity test to find out. But if the man loves the child, has a good relationship with the child, and intends to continue to love and support the child even if proved not to be the biological father, then a paternity test is probably a bad idea.

Some men rationalize that they just need to know. They say it will not affect their relationship with the child, and they won't ever tell the mother they took the test, no matter how the test comes out. Most often this is simply unrealistic.

If the test indicates that the man is not the child's biological father, then it may subconsciously and unintentionally change his attitude and behavior toward the child. The test results sometimes also slip out unintentionally in a heated argument with the mother, or the mother may find the laboratory report, or may hear about it from someone the man has told. This may even cause the mother to prevent a continuing relationship between the man and the child.

It is also possible that the child may somehow find out about the test. Learning that the man is not the child's biological father may have a serious impact on the child's self-image, and the child's assumptions about how the man feels toward the child. This can occur even if the man assures the child that his feelings toward the child are unchanged. There are many other possible adverse consequences of the paternity test in this situation. They depend, in part, on the individual facts of each case.

Please carefully consider all of the possible consequences before deciding to take a paternity test. As discussed in the preceding section, there are many possible reasons to take a paternity test. But if you are a man who has assumed that you are the child's father, and you and the child have a good loving relationship that you want to continue, and if the only reason to take the test is "because you have to know," then please carefully weigh the possible consequences before setting up a paternity test. Please think of the child's needs, and make the choice that best protects and promotes the incredibly important relationship you have with your child.