There are several reasons for DNA paternity testing to be carried out, ranging from the need to prove paternity over a child to alleviate suspicious minds, to legal requirements for court hearings.

If the results of a paternity test are to be used in a court of law, then there are legal procedures that must be adhered to. If a test is simply for one’s own peace of mind, then a simple to use, at-home-test will suffice, whereby you collect the samples yourself and send them to a testing lab of your choice.

If proof of paternity is needed for legal reasons, then the process becomes more involves, with samples needing to be collected and identification authenticated by a medical professional. Oral swabs, taken from the inside cheek of the mouth are an accepted form of DNA sample for both legal and at-home tests, the difference being proof and authentication of identity.

Possible Reasons For Paternity Testing

1. In the instance where a man has a paternity suit filed against him, and is facing child support payments, it would be very important to establish what the biological relationship is between man and child. You may be unaware of the child’s existence or doubt paternity and would therefore need a paternity test with legal bearing to disprove the mother’s claim.

2. Other known situations involve a legacy where unknown or known but disputed children lay claim to an inheritance. There are false and genuine claims in this area and it is wise to have a DNA paternity test carried out to clear up any doubts and be fair to all concerned. The same would also apply to a child laying claim to a mother’s estate, since DNA testing is not solely applicable to men.

3. In cases where a child has been adopted or conceived through donor conception, the child in question may want to find his/her biological father. Following divorce cases where a mother gets sole custody, or in cases where a child has been raised by adopted parents, there is often a need, once the child grows up, to meet and have a relationship with their biological father.

4. Sibling cases present their own problems in testing. A paternity test on each sibling will determine if they share a common father, however a paternity report is needed to find out who that father is. Even in cases of twins, it cannot be assumed that they share the same father, since 1 in 12 twins worldwide have different fathers.

True identical twins, however, do share the same father since they have identical genetic codes and come from the same egg. This can prove to be a problem later on in life if one of them is tested for the paternity of a child since either one of them could be the father because of their identical DNA. Click here if interested in  twins DNA testing.

5. Social security and insurance claims also require proof of paternity if a father is deceased. In such cases a medical examiner can obtain DNA posthumously and conduct a legal paternity test without the claimant needing to rely on other forms of evidence to convince a court of a biological relationship.

As you can see, there are many instances where the use of for the use a paternity test is necessary, and now that accredited laboratories can return a result of probability of paternity in excess of 99.9% it is legally recognised as the most accurate way to establish biological relationships that exists between people.

easyDNA specialize in the provision of reliable, accurate and confidential paternal verification tests, DNA relationship testing and DNA forensic testing to both the private and public sector.