paternity petition

What Is a petition to establish paternity?

A paternity petition form is a legal document that is filed with Family Court that provides an unmarried alleged father the opportunity to establish paternity of a child.

Who can file paternity petition?

Paternity petitions can be filed by either the alleged biological father or the mother of the child.

Filing a paternity petition form does not guarantee that the petition will be accepted. Acceptance of the document will be decided by a Judge or Magistrate. The court may decide that a DNA Paternity Test will need to be order to confirm the biological relationship between the alleged father and child.

How to file a petition to establish paternity?

A petition to establish paternity is a legal request to the court to determine the legal father of a child. The petition may be filed by either the mother (custodial parent if not the mother) or the alleged father of the child.

1. First thing you must do is contact your city’s Family Court to inquire about obtaining a paternity petition form. There are no universal way to acquire paternity petition because the process differs slightly from state to state.
2. After you acquire the form, Follow the instructions and complete the document.
3. Upon the completion of your paternity petition submit the document to your local family court house.

When is a Court-Ordered Paternity Test performed?

A court-ordered paternity test is carried out subsequent to your court appearance. After the test is completed, the DNA paternity test results can be presented to the Family Court.

The process to obtain a court-ordered paternity test involves filing a petition for paternity form, also known as paternity test paperwork. Once this paperwork is approved by the court, the Judge will issue a court order to the respondent.

If you require a legal paternity test, feel free to reach out to our office at 866-205-8356 to book an appointment.