Type In Legal Tennessee Paternity Forms For Free

Parents can establish paternity in Tennessee until the child reaches age 21; however, the VAoP process is available only until the child reaches age 19. It is in the best interest of the child to establish paternity right away, preferably at the time of birth.

They need to have DNA testing to determine whether or not the individual is the father. They can contact a private DNA lab or their local child support office to schedule the DNA tests. Click here to find the child support office which serves the county in which you live.

A number of people may file the petition: the mother, the father, the child (through a guardian), or the Tennessee Department of Human Services if the child is receiving public assistance. If either the mother or the father denies or is uncertain of paternity, the court may order DNA testing.

In Tennessee, if the parents of a child are not married to each other when the child is born, then paternity must be established before the father's name will be added to the child's birth certificate and before the father has any rights to the child.

When a woman who is not married gives birth to a child in Tennessee, she automatically has custody of her child. The father must establish paternity in order to assert his rights, which include parenting time and custody.

HB 2698 by *Parkinson Paternity - As introduced, clarifies that a party to a civil or criminal proceeding in which the paternity of a child is at issue may voluntarily seek a genetic test from an accredited laboratory before a court issues an order requiring the genetic test.