Using DNA To Exonerate Paternity Fraud Victims From Child Support

A Texas bill could help exonerate men from their duty to pay child support in circumstances involving mistaken paternity and paternity fraud.

If the alleged father can prove through DNA testing that the child he is ordered to pay support for is not biologically his, then he would be released from his child support obligation, according to Texas Senate Bill 785.

The bill was passed by both the Texas House and Senate and is currently before Texas Gov. Rick Perry awaiting his approval to become law. (UPDATE: Gov. Perry has signed the bill into law.)

Under the proposed law, men will have one year from the date they had knowledge that a child might not be theirs to file a suit contesting paternity.

However, there would be no restitution or compensation to the falsely accused parent for previous child support paid. As the article by a Texas CBS affiliate explains, this is different from wrongly convicted felons who are exonerated by DNA evidence and then compensated by Texas for the time they spent in jail.

If you need help with a child support modification, contact the divorce attorneys for men at Cordell & Cordell.

Click the link for the full text of Texas Senate Bill 785.

Use the Child Support Calculator on DadsDivorce.com for an estimated amount of how much child support you should be paying.