Can You Disestablish Paternity in Maryland

[marylandmini]

My question involves paternity law for the State of: Maryland

A child is born to a mother who was married at the time of birth, but was separated (child was conceived while separated as well). The husband is not the biological father, but
by MD law, she put the husband on the birth certificate. They are now divorced. The biological father refused to acknowledge the child was his during the pregnancy,
and has since refused all communication by the mother to see the baby. He has clearly stated he wants nothing to do with the child, as he believes it is not his.
He would likely not challenge the paternity or ask for visitation/custody.

The mother decides to file for child support and other aid and involves Dept of Social Services. They immediately file for support against the ex-husband. A hearing is held
and there is a joint motion from both the mother and her ex-husband for a dna test. DNA testing is scheduled and a follow up hearing/contempt hearing is scheduled
for two months from now. If the dna test shows him not to be the father (which is likely the case), does this free DSS and/or the mother to then go after the alleged biological
father?

From what I've read, paternity cannot be disestablished by either parent unless another third party challenges it, such as the biological father. Does DSS count as that third party
and can they challenge it via dna testing? The child was not disestablished in the divorce case - it was uncontested, no lawyers, pretty basic.

[jk]

I haven't dug much into it but the requirement a 3rd party initiate the action appears to not be correct.. Here is a quote from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/...tion/ch04.html

quoting a Maryland case:

Reversing prior holdings based on a recent statutory change, the Maryland Court of Appeals recently held that Family Law Article Section 5-1038(a)(2)(i)(2) applies retroactively to any action to disestablish paternity, regardless of the date when paternity was established,Langston v. Riffe, 359 Md. 396, 754 A.2d 389 (Md. 2000). This provision gives an adjudicated father the right to reopen and challenge the paternity declaration against him when post declaration genetic test results show that he is not the child's biological father. The Court further held that the adjudicated father may request a blood or genetic test in order to confirm or deny paternity. A determination of the best interests of the child is inappropriate and irrelevant to deciding whether to order genetic testing or disestablish paternity.
The decision impacts any Maryland paternity determination made without genetic testing (although not voluntary acknowledgments entered under Maryland's current statute). Several questions arise as a result of this ruling. Where no genetic testing was involved, is a Maryland paternity order entitled to full faith and credit under PRWORA? May a man whose paternity determination is subject to reopening in Maryland request genetic testing in a subsequent UIFSA proceeding or only in Maryland?

Which is about as far from your position as possible. Not only can the father initiate the action but he can actually initiate an action if he had already been adjudicated as the father if a post judgment dna test disputes paternity. That would basically apply in situation where courts simply said "you are the father" without supporting proof or an acknowledgment of paternity by the man named as father.

whether it would apply to a presumptive determination of paternity (named the father due to the marriage) I don't know. Hang on for dogmatique (or others). This is an area dogmatique is well versed in.

[marylandmini]

Okay thank you. Looks like maybe I misunderstood what I was reading.

I guess my main question is - IF the exhusband is found not to be the biological father through dna testing, does this clear the way for the alleged biological
father to be served with a paternity action by either DSS or the mother?

[Dogmatique]

If paternity is formally disestablished, then yes.

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Wait - is this you? clicky clicky

[jk]

[QUOTE=Dogmatique;625176]If pa/QUOTE]what? You got a bell around your neck that rings every time I type your name? That was fast.

[marylandmini]

If paternity is formally disestablished, then yes.

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Wait - is this you? clicky clicky

Oh dear God....no, it is not me, but it is more than likely one of the parties in this particular case (or someone closely related to them). Likely the mother herself, but possibly her own mother. Sorry, I had no idea this had been posted elsewhere. (If you post there, you might want to let them know, this mother is pregnant again with her fiance....total mess of a situation.)

[Dogmatique]

No need to apologize! But given that it seems to be the case you're talking about here, it might help others get a "feel" for some of the nitty gritty particulars.



- - - Updated - - -

No need to apologize! But given that it seems to be the case you're talking about here, it might help others get a "feel" for some of the nitty gritty particulars.



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(Jeez...I was apparently so impressed with myself there that I posted it twice. Doh!)

[marylandmini]

Okay, here are the details:

Mother is married, they get separated. She starts dating everything that isn't tied down. Finds out she's pregnant.
Has to 'count back' to figure out which guy she was running around with at the time. Contacts the best choice when she finds
out she's exactly a month pregnant. (Seems to me it was purposedly done). The lucky guy swears it's not his, doesn't believe it,
and tells her to quit bothering him. This was a 'friend' she's known for years and apparently he's one of the few she was running around
with that has a steady job. He swears he doesn't even remember having sex with her, but they were at the same party, drinking, the
night she swears it happened. And here comes the baby almost 40 weeks to the day.

She harassed his family nonstop and they want nothing to do with her, and unfortunately the baby, because she is completely nuts. When she was 6 months pregnant, she started dating someone and he is the now fiance and 'daddy'. Everyone has been led to believe the child is his. Her divorce finally went through when the baby was 4 months old. The child is now 9 months old, and she is 5 months pregnant with the fiance's baby. After continuing to harass the alleged biological father's family begging him to just come see her and the baby and meet the baby, I guess she gave up. She sent a family member an email saying she was filing for support and he had one last chance to try to work something out of court. All emails before this stated she wasn't asking for money, she just wanted him to come 'meet' the baby.

So now she has MD DSS involved and since her ex-husband is the legal father, they both told court they want a dna test to get him off the birth certificate as the father. That way, she can then pursue the alleged father. Oh..and the ex-husband? He has a baby on the way and his fiance is flipping out that he's even involved in the child support case.

That's about the gist of it.......unfortunately, the loser in all of this is the child. The alleged father doesn't want to get involved even if he is the father because he and his family have seen this girl and her family in 'action' and it's just non-stop drama. So in order to have a relationship with that child, it would mean dealing with them. Sad all around.

So...I guess the big question is, IF the ex-husband is found to not be the father, then can the mother or DSS go after the alleged father or can it only be done if the alleged father wants to pursue paternity?