How Is Paternity Established in Wisconsin?
Paternity is the legal determination of a child's father. Establishing paternity can affect child support, legal custody, physical placement, inheritance rights, access to family medical history, and other legal rights and responsibilities. Wisconsin recognizes several different ways to establish legal paternity, and the correct route depends on whether the parents are married, whether everyone agrees about parentage, and whether genetic testing is necessary.
Four common ways Wisconsin establishes paternity
1. Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment (VPA). If the mother and the man who believes he is the father are both adults and are certain of paternity, they may sign and file a Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment. Once properly completed and filed with the Office of Vital Records, the form establishes legal paternity without a court trial.
2. Court determination. If paternity is disputed, uncertain, or otherwise requires judicial action, a paternity case may be filed in circuit court under Wis. Stat. ch. 767. The court can order genetic testing and ultimately enter a judgment determining paternity.
3. Conclusive determination based on genetic testing. Wisconsin law permits paternity to be conclusively determined in certain circumstances based on genetic testing obtained through the child support system. A 99 percent or greater probability is significant under Wisconsin law, subject to the statutory requirements and any existing paternity presumption.
4. Acknowledgment of a marital child. If the biological parents marry after the child is born, Wisconsin law provides a procedure by which the child may become a marital child and the parents may update the child's legal parentage records.
What if genetic testing is needed?
In a paternity action, the court may require genetic testing of the child, mother, and alleged father. Under Wis. Stat. section 767.84, test results showing that an alleged father is not excluded and that the statistical probability of parentage is 99 percent or higher create a rebuttable presumption of paternity. Test results excluding an alleged father are conclusive evidence of nonpaternity for that man.
Does establishing paternity automatically create placement rights?
No. Legal paternity and legal custody are related but different issues. Wisconsin law provides that when there is no marital presumption of paternity, the mother has sole legal custody until a court orders otherwise, even if paternity has been acknowledged or conclusively determined through genetic testing. A father who wants a court-ordered right to make major decisions or exercise physical placement may need to obtain a custody and placement order. A paternity judgment can address legal custody, physical placement, and child support under Wis. Stat. sections 767.89 and 767.41.
Why legal paternity matters
· It identifies the child's legal father.
· It allows the court to enter child support orders.
· It allows legal custody and physical placement to be addressed.
· It can affect inheritance, benefits, insurance, and access to medical history.
· It can affect rights if an adoption or other proceeding involving the child is later filed.
A caution before signing a VPA
A Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment is a legal document, not simply a birth-certificate form. If either parent is uncertain about biological parentage, genetic testing should be considered before signing. Correcting an established legal parentage determination later can be substantially more difficult than resolving uncertainty at the outset.
Official Wisconsin resources
Wisconsin DCF - Establishing Legal Fatherhood (Paternity): https://dcf.wisconsin.gov/cs/paternity/home
Wis. Stat. section 767.80 - Determination of paternity: https://law.justia.com/codes/wisconsin/chapter-767/section-767-80/
Wis. Stat. section 767.84 - Genetic tests in paternity actions: https://law.justia.com/codes/wisconsin/chapter-767/section-767-84/
General information only. This page is not legal advice, and the application of Wisconsin law depends on the facts of each case.