Child Support: Am I Really The Father?

It is sometimes the case that after a separation, a father learns of a horrible truth that a child of a marriage or de facto relationship might not be his. And to make matters worse, he has a liability to pay child support under a child support assessment. 

 

If you suspect this has happened to you, and you question whether you should be paying child support payments for someone else’s child, something can be done. Parentage can be proven (or disproven) through simple and easy DNA testing.

 

DNA testing centres can conclusively prove whether or not you are the father of a child. If you and the child’s mother agree to undergoing the non-intrusive testing, the parties and the child can attend their own GP to provide a saliva sample which can be shipped off to the DNA testing lab for testing. 

 

The Family Law Regulations requires both parties to consent to the testing procedure. However, sometimes the child’s mother does not consent to the DNA testing. This might indicate that the child’s mother has something to hide and that you may not be the father of the child. This mere suspicion however, is not enough to release you from your child support obligations. 

 

A Court will only make an Order discharging you from your child support liability if there is sufficient proof in terms of a DNA test which will conclusively prove that you are not the father of the child.

 

We have on numerous occasions obtained Court Orders discharging our clients from their child support liabilities in cases where the client was not the father of a child, or the mother was obtaining child support where she should not have.

For a relatively small cost, you can find out for certain whether or not you are the father of a child. Considering that your child support liability is assessed as a percentage of your gross income and is payable until the child turns 18, it may very well be a worthwhile investment.