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Establishing Paternity in North Carolina In North Carolina, listing someone as the father on the child's birth certificate is not valid proof of paternity, so state law provides two ways for a father to establish paternity: (1) affidavit of parentage; and (2) civil action.

Establishing paternity identifies the legal parents of a child and determines the parents listed on the birth certificate. When a child is born to a couple that is married, North Carolina law presumes the spouse of the mother/birthing parent to be the father or second parent.

Paternity can be established by voluntary acknowledgment of paternity or by court order. The most convenient time for parents to establish paternity for their child is in the hospital when the child is born. The father must be present and provide identification to have his name placed on the Affidavit of Parentage.

Genetic (DNA) testing is recommended if there are doubts regarding the paternity of the child. Blood or tissue samples may be used for testing. The most common method uses tissue swabbed from the inside of the cheek. This test is highly accurate in determining the probability that a man is the father of a child.

(d) If the action to establish paternity is brought more than three years after birth of a child or is brought after the death of the putative father, paternity shall not be established in a contested case without evidence from a blood or genetic marker test.

Genetic tests are mandatory for establishing paternity after the alleged father's death. State law further restricts the ability to seek a paternity order against a deceased father.