Paternity Dispute Legal Steps

Summary

It is important to consult a family lawyer to guide you through the paternity dispute process. You may have grounds to appeal the paternity decision if you believe the tests were mishandled. Additionally, you can file for a modification of the child support order if the fathers circumstances have changed. Always seek personalized legal advice for your specific situation.

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me and my child’s father in * after I signed up for Tennessee assistance for needy families while he was saving money for us to do a private DNA received the results of our DNA. It was positive I was present there was a third-party witness for the entire testing. We notified my caseworker once approved for TNF afterwards that he had already been paying child support and taking our son into his home and wanted to sign a voluntary acknowledgment due to health department being closed because of Covid and have to go through child support because of being on tennis I was told we could do so through the enforcement office when the enforcement office reached out and made contact I expressed all these things to them the same as I had my caseworker I was advised that done by appointment and they would be contacting me back. However, rather we received an order to establish paternity from the title for Attorney General on February * of * and then on February * of * we received an administrative order to do genetic testing not knowing any better I did not appeal he’s my child’s father I know *%. We went and tested. However, I was supposed to be present at that test. He was supposed to take us he did not. I was not present for his test. I know my son had a bottle he admits to eating and drinking which can interfere labCorp came back negative. We went to the courts and demanded a second test. They submitted our Viard test, which was done through a Canadian based lab, so it does not go by the same accreditation standards as the US being that we did not plan on needing to use it in court we did not do chain of command. They compared it with the labor and under state law as we are allowed, was ordering a second genetic test, though we were paying out-of-pocket is my understanding we were to get to pick the accredited laboratory in the state that we would go to. I had chosen that game mobile diagnostics however, upon arriving at the child support enforcement office to sign because the courts were closed. We had still not seen a magistrate or anybody at this point the order read that we would be testing at DC and rather than a blood to blood test which is what was discussed the order stated for a blood to vehicle. I disagree, stating this is not what we had agreed to we were paying I was told if I did not sign it, I would lose benefits , upon signing it I was also not allowed to be present at the DDC test and drawing for Mark his father him and my son were tested at separate times and it was blood to the test we did was bugle to bugle. It came back negative in the order from May *. It said that if DDC excluded him is the father of the hearing that July * of * would be canceled upon receiving and hearing that the results were negative. Also, they denied us to have the results sent directly to us, as well as to them from DDC and interfered and had them sent directly to them, resulting in me, never receiving a hardcopy of the actual results until * when I confronted them at the office asking them about net why I wasn’t allowed to go there even though I have emailed proof that we requested it we paid out-of-pocket and was told that I did not. That was false told there was nothing they could do was coerced into giving a different name, threatened again to have my benefits taken. If I did not name somebody somebody else, even though there was nobody else to name gave them a name of somebody that would go test as I was told and promised that they would then look at his actual father’s testing again to see what the problem was as there was discrepancies between the three test contradicting each other also on February * of * because they had held court on July * without notification to meet or his father, and again on July * finalizing the case to close it out without our presence, and because no appeal was filed we did not know to file appeal as we did not know that there was ever any hearing held I received a postcard dated February *, * stating that Mark case his father had been reactivated and pursued for child support. This is the last contact I heard until August * when I was told by my Dhs caseworker that I needed to go down to their office to find out what they were doing about his case . When I went to the office I was told there is no case it was closed in * they’re doing nothing and I must name another name again I stated there’s no name to name I was promised to have this sent to Nashville. You held court without me present, and they told me to civilly sue them. It wasn’t their problem . What should I do as the father is no longer willing to cooperate or help. He helped even passed both negative test, because he knew he was his father however, having another younger child as well with someone else, he took the open door that was presented to him and walked out at our sons life because of their actions. What options do I have?
I'm sorry to hear about your situation, ****. It seems that you have been through a lot and you're seeking to establish the paternity of your child for the sake of child support. Here are some general steps you might consider:
- Consult a family lawyer: They can provide guidance based on your specific circumstances and local laws.
- Appeal the paternity decision: If you feel the tests were mishandled, you may have grounds to appeal.
- File for a modification of the child support order: If the father's circumstances have changed, this might be an option.
Remember, this is general advice and it's crucial to consult with a lawyer for your specific situation.