Establishing paternity in court - how to prove paternity and apply for child support

Establishing paternity is a procedure that can be caused by various reasons. As a rule, the main reason is the lack of a legally registered marriage between the child’s parents. Another reason may also be another situation, for example, if a woman gives birth to a child not from her legal spouse, at the birth of the child the legal spouse is automatically recognized as the father, but it may be necessary to establish the paternity of the child’s biological father.

Depending on whether the child’s father wants to voluntarily establish paternity or, on the contrary, he refuses this by all means, the procedure for establishing paternity, its duration and complexity depends.

How can paternity be established?

If the child’s father himself wants to become the child’s legal father, then the issue is resolved voluntarily through the registry office. If the child’s father does not want to establish paternity of the child, but his mother does, then the issue is resolved in court by filing a statement of claim.

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How is the establishment of paternity regulated at the legislative level?

In the Russian Federation, issues related to establishing paternity are regulated by certain regulatory documents. Codes: Civil procedure, Family, Tax. Similar legal documents also include:

Law “On Civil Status Acts”;
709 PP dated 07/06/1998;
Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 9 of October 25, 1996, with clarifications of some issues regarding the application of the Family Code.

This also includes documents at the international level, for example, the Convention on Legal Assistance and Legal Relations in Civil, Family and Criminal Matters. In addition, certain treaties of international significance concerning the difficult relationship between children and their parents, concluded during the USSR, are also valid.

No dispute about the right

The fact of recognition of paternity or the fact of paternity can be established by the court according to the rules of special proceedings provided for in Chapter 28 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, provided that there is no dispute about the law. If, when filing an application or considering a case in a special proceeding, it is established that there is a dispute about the law within the jurisdiction of the court, the court issues a ruling to leave the application to establish the fact of recognition of paternity or the fact of paternity without consideration, in which it explains to the applicant and other interested parties their right to resolve the dispute in procedure for claim proceedings (part 3 of Article 263 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation) (clause 24 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated May 16, 2017 N 16).

Which court hears paternity cases?

Family Code of the Russian Federation;
Civil Procedure Code and Tax Code of the Russian Federation;
Law “On Civil Status Acts”;
709th Government Resolution dated July 6, 1998, adopted in furtherance of the above-mentioned law;
Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 9 of October 25, 1996, explaining some issues of application of the Family Code.

the claim is based on a notarized transaction;
the claim is based on a transaction concluded in simple written form;
the claim is based on a protest of the bill of exchange made by the notary for non-payment, non-acceptance and undated acceptance;
a requirement to collect alimony for minor children that is not related to establishing paternity, challenging paternity (maternity) or the need to involve other interested parties;
requirement to collect from citizens arrears of taxes, fees and other obligatory payments;
demand for the recovery of accrued but not paid wages to the employee;
requirement of the internal affairs body, the bailiff unit for the recovery of expenses incurred in connection with the search for the defendant, or the debtor and his property, or a child taken from the debtor by court decision, as well as expenses associated with the storage of seized property seized from the debtor, and storage of the property of a debtor evicted from the residential premises he occupies.

16. If, during the execution of a court order or a court decision to collect alimony, the child for whom it was awarded went to be raised and supported by the parent paying alimony for him, and the claimant did not refuse to receive it, release from further payment of alimony is not made in the procedure for executing the decision, but by filing a corresponding claim by this parent, since by virtue of the law, issues of collection of alimony and exemption from their payment in the event of a dispute are resolved by the court in the procedure of claim proceedings.

However, it must be taken into account that none of the evidence has pre-established force for the court (Article 56 of the Code of Civil Procedure). On the other hand, any evidence that indisputably testifies to the origin of a child from a specific person serves as the basis for satisfying the claim (Article 49 of the Family Code).

The plaintiff, who voluntarily recognized his paternity, without being the biological father, in this case is obliged to prove that these circumstances became known to him only after the registration of the act record. If he knew in advance that he was not the biological father of the child, but when committing a legal act, acted under the threat of other persons, and did not realize the consequences of his actions, the plaintiff must provide evidence of these circumstances.

A court decision to establish a legal fact 5) the fact that title documents (with the exception of military documents, passports and certificates issued by the registry office) belong to a person whose first name, patronymic or last name indicated in the document do not coincide with the similar data indicated in the passport or certificate about birth;

The court often has to establish the fact of legal family relationships between citizens. The procedure for judicial establishment of paternity Establishment of paternity as a legal act entails the need for the father to bear parental responsibilities established by law, therefore not all men are ready to recognize paternity voluntarily.

To protect the rights of the child, there is a judicial mechanism for establishing paternity when a claim is filed by the mother or other interested parties.

Moscow) (St. Petersburg) It's fast and free! Jurisdiction of cases Jurisdiction of cases challenging paternity is regulated by the norms of procedural legislation. They determined that claims are filed in the office of the district court, which is located at the defendant’s residence address.

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In addition to this category of cases, the district court has jurisdiction over: The office of the district court accepts the application subject to the payment by the applicant of the state fee. If the claim is subsequently satisfied, the plaintiff will also have to pay a state fee for the actions of the registry office:

amending the father's registration record;
issuance of a new copy of the birth certificate.

Samples of statements of claim to challenge paternity A statement of claim that contains a demand to disprove paternity must, in its form, comply with the norms of 131, 132 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

This issue is resolved based on the results of genetic testing (i.e.

by comparing the genetic cells of the father and child). Therefore, little depends on your behavior in court.

If the examination establishes paternity, the court will automatically make a decision recognizing the citizen as the father.

When preparing cases of establishing paternity for trial and during the consideration of the case, the judge (court), in necessary cases, to clarify issues related to the origin of the child, has the right, taking into account the opinions of the parties and the circumstances of the case, to order an examination. The conclusion of the examination on the issue of the origin of the child, including those carried out using the “genetic fingerprinting” method, by virtue of Part 3 of Art.

2 tbsp. 67 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, no evidence has pre-established force for the court.

In short, you need to provide evidence disproving your paternity. Such evidence may include: testimony of witnesses, written evidence (for example, letters), an essential point will be genetic examination.

If the evidence is in your favor, the court will reject the claim.

Children's rights to collect alimony

When the child’s natural father agreed to recognize his son or daughter as relatives, then at the end of time he will no longer be able to refuse the direct responsibilities of a parent. Each man can also come to justice to begin the process of challenging their relationship, however, if during the registration he knew that the person was not the natural father of the child, then the justice authorities will most likely refuse the application.

In cases related to paternity, justice most often takes the side of single mothers who independently raise a minor.

What methods of establishing paternity are there?

Paternity can be established through an entry made in the register. The ex-husband of the child’s mother is automatically recognized as the father, and this will happen within 300 days, that is, 10 months in total, but this is after:

marriage ties were dissolved;
the man died.

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They even introduced a special “300-day rule”, and it is usually applied as a general rule. If a man and a woman are in a civil marriage, and at the same time she still has an illegitimate child, then the fact of paternity should be established in the so-called voluntary manner, and this happens through the courts.

There can be only one small exception to the rule, if a representative of the fairer sex is at that moment in a marriage officially registered in the registry office. In such situations, paternity can be established, but a joint application must be submitted to the court for review.

Other legal circumstances will also be considered and may act as the main obstacle to a voluntary determination of paternity. Such situations imply that relationship cannot be established.

A man can challenge paternity, and this usually occurs in court according to legal grounds. For its part, the defendant in the case must bring to justice the person who is recorded as the father of the child.

When is the “fact of recognition of paternity” established, and when is the “fact of paternity”

For children born on 03/01/1996 and later, the court establishes the fact of recognition of paternity if this person recognized himself as the father of the child, or the fact of paternity when there is no evidence of recognition of paternity, but evidence is presented that reliably confirms the origin of the child from a specific person ( Article 49 of the RF IC) (for example, an expert opinion confirming paternity, medical documents reliably confirming the fact of paternity, etc. are presented).

How to establish paternity in court?

What steps must be taken to establish paternity in court:

determine who exactly will act as the plaintiff, it can be either the mother or the father, or even a guardian;
the preparation process is carried out and only then the statement of claim is transferred to the courtroom with all the necessary documentation that must be attached to it;

interests are protected during the judicial review process;
if the case is won, documents must be submitted to the registry office for consideration and for this it is necessary to carry out the procedure for state registration of kinship;
You may need a documentary base with evidence that paternity has been established, and it will be issued by the registry office.

Often in the Russian Federation, such cases occur in judicial practice. This usually concerns issues of establishing the paternity of deceased citizens, and in such cases, any claim can be filed by mothers who have children under 18 years of age.

The key purpose of the claim is to carry out the procedure for collecting alimony, or the child must be recognized as one of the heirs of the property of the deceased parent. It is much less common to find cases challenging paternity that were considered at the initiative of biological fathers.

Establishing paternity involves a conflict of interest, which can be eliminated by proving your point of view in court, which is done by collecting evidence, first of all, a certain list of documents, the totality of which will tip the scales to one side or another. At the first stage, the applicant submits to the court:

The claim and its copy, which the court sends to the defendant;
A payment document that confirms that the state fee for legal proceedings in the case has been included in the budget;
A power of attorney by which the plaintiff authorizes the representative to represent him in court;
Documents confirming the requirements. These can be a child’s birth certificate, information from the state. authorities, joint photographs of the defendant and the baby, which indicate that the plaintiff and defendant live together, indicate a list of witnesses who are to be called for questioning in the courtroom, etc.

During legal proceedings, any of the parties upon a petition, as well as the court itself, on its own initiative, has the right to order an examination. DNA testing may be the most effective, guaranteeing a reliable result, but due to its high cost, they do not always use the right to prescribe it if other evidence is sufficient.

If an exhaustive list is not available, the parties themselves make every possible attempt to prove their case.

In addition, in cases of this category, they practice scheduling a preliminary hearing, during which the parties stipulate what additional evidence the court needs to request in order to study and evaluate it during the judicial investigation.

Claim;

Special.

The claim proceedings include:

drawing up the claim itself, which identifies the plaintiff (the person who goes to court), the defendant (the person against whom the claims are made), and also sets out the circumstances of the case (the reason for going to court and evidence of the validity of the claims) and the claims themselves;
collection of written evidence that is attached to the claim;
filing a claim in court;
participation in the trial. Involves presenting evidence to the court, filing petitions, petitions, etc. in order to defend their demands.

The claim is subject to a state fee, the payment receipt of which is also sent to the court along with the claim.

Making the desired decision to satisfy the requirements involves a subsequent application to the registry office to make a record there about the child’s father in accordance with the decision. After which the registry office issues a corresponding certificate for the child, which reflects information about the father.

Refusal to satisfy the claim and disagreement with such a decision gives the right to appeal the decision through the appeal procedure.

The Tax Code provides for the mandatory payment of a fee in cases of establishing paternity, both in claims and in special proceedings. The amount of the duty is determined in Art. 333.19 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and amounts to 300 rubles.

The plaintiff has the right to apply for exemption from paying the duty, but the request must provide reasons for the reason. The court, having considered the petition, will either make a satisfactory decision on it or refuse it.

At the same time, when a decision is made, the court indicates in it that the state duty and other legal costs are recovered from the loser. Therefore, satisfaction of the claims entails the defendant returning to the plaintiff the amount of the paid duty.

Motherhood is wonderful, and it’s up to the mother to decide whether to raise and support the child herself or ask the father for help. But you shouldn’t take on sometimes unbearable burdens, especially in material terms. You should not put the brakes on the issue of involving a biological father in the child’s life, who does not want to take on the burden of paternity. The practice is that the courts are always on the side of mothers and children, and approach the collection and analysis of evidence carefully.

Attention

The most important thing in a claim to disprove the fact of paternity is the evidence presented, which must completely exclude the possibility of paternity. Evidence in such cases includes:

results of DNA examination and other forensic examinations (about inability to reproduce, an individual map of the course of pregnancy and childbirth);
witness testimony (which can confirm the fact of separation of spouses, the presence of another man with the wife);
written evidence (official documents, personal correspondence, etc.);
other evidence that is not prohibited by law, refuting the fact of paternity.

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In many cases, a genetic examination is an indisputable argument in the case of refuting the fact of paternity, which can be requested during a court hearing.

A claim to establish paternity can be brought not only by the mother of the child, but also by a person who considers himself his father. STATEMENT OF CLAIM to establish paternity A statement of claim to establish paternity is filed in the general manner with the district court at the place of residence of the defendant. The plaintiff is exempt from paying the state fee when filing a claim, since the claim is aimed at protecting the interests of the child.

Judicial establishment of paternity is used in the following cases:

the man does not want to recognize the child;
a woman prevents paternity from being established voluntarily;
the blood father wishes to exclude information about the legal husband from the child’s documents;
the biological father died before paternity was established.

Not all men wish to obtain parental rights and responsibilities in relation to natural children. The main reason for refusal is the obligation to provide financial support for the minor. Often, information about the presence of a natural child is hidden from the official spouse.

The law protects the interests of the minor. And the presence of an official father is in the interests of the child. Therefore, the issue can be resolved forcibly.

In some cases, a woman does not want to include information about the biological father in children's documents. This is primarily due to the reluctance to advertise the identity of the child’s natural parent. In this case, the man can go to court.

Paternity can only be established upon the application of the interested person.

It should be said that such court cases aimed at establishing paternity usually fall into the category of rather complex disputes. They are often very lengthy in terms of resolution and difficult from a moral point of view for all persons involved. Therefore, the child’s mother, who wants to protect the latter’s rights and establish paternity in court, must first weigh, evaluate all the pros and cons and take into account all the possible legal consequences of this step.

Good afternoon. The jurisdiction of cases by the magistrate is determined by the provisions of Art. 23 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation. It directly states that cases of establishing paternity are not within the jurisdiction of the magistrate. You need to file a claim in district court. The father’s simple failure to appear in court does not matter at all, because You must first figure out whether the father was notified of the trial, whether there were good reasons why he could not appear, etc.

The commented article establishes the judicial procedure and grounds for recognizing paternity in court in the event of the birth of a child to parents who are not married to each other. This procedure is quite rightly called forced, since the mutual will of the child’s parents, who are not married to each other, is absent to recognize the fact of paternity.

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How to establish paternity after the death of a father

In the event of the death of the child’s father, who recognized himself as such, but was not married to his mother, the fact of his recognition of paternity can be established by the court (Article 50 of the RF IC).

1. Cases and grounds for establishing the fact of recognition of paternity

The fact of recognition of paternity is established in the event of the death of a person who recognized himself as the father of a child born on March 1, 1996 and later, but who was not married to his mother.

With regard to children born before October 1, 1968, from unmarried persons, the fact of recognition of paternity in the event of the death of a person who recognized himself as the father of the child can be established only if at the time of the death of the specified person or earlier the child was in his custody. dependent.

In relation to persons (children) born in the period from 10/01/1968 to 03/01/1996, the fact of paternity is established, and not the fact of its recognition (clauses 22, 23 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 05/16/2017 N 16). Thus, the fact of recognition of paternity can be established if the mother and father of the child were not in a registered marriage, the father recognized his paternity, but died without filing an application for recognition of paternity during his lifetime (clause 3 of article 48, article 50 RF IC).

Jurisdiction for claims for recognition of paternity

Filing an application to establish paternity in court can be done in court:

At the place of residence of the defendant;
At the plaintiff's place of residence.

The right to file a claim is vested in:

Mother;
A potential father who has been refused by the guardianship and trusteeship authorities to establish paternity;
Guardian (trustee) or other person who is dependent on the child;
A child who is 18 years of age at the time of filing the claim.

The application must comply with the general requirements for the form and content of the statement of claim and consists of three parts:

An introductory, so-called header, which reflects where (which court), who (full name, address of the plaintiff), to whom (full name, address of the defendant);
Descriptive and motivational, in which the applicant sets out the essence with arguments and reference to evidence;
Resolution, in which specific requirements are formulated.

Afterwards, it is worth indicating the number of sheets attached to the claim, with a list of attached documents, as well as a list of persons who need to be summoned to court for questioning as witnesses.

A sample application can be obtained either on the Internet, or in court, or by contacting a lawyer. consultation, where a competent claim will be prepared for a small fee.

Acknowledgment of paternity without the presence of the mother

Establishing paternity without the presence of his natural mother can occur only in certain cases:

when the mother was deprived of rights to the child;
if the mother is declared missing;
when the mother died;
if there is consent from the guardianship authorities;
if the mother was declared incompetent.

Recognition of a child by the father, when the offspring was registered with another man from birth

When the birth certificate of a child contains a note in which another man is recorded as the father, the Civil Registry Office does not have the right to accept such an application. In this case, paternity must be contested.

Briefly about establishing the origin of children

Let's look at why establishing paternity is necessary. For parental rights and responsibilities to appear, these men must be included in the children's documents. If there is an official marriage, the mother's husband is by default considered the natural parent and is included in the birth record. The rule also applies to children born within 300 days after the divorce.

If the biological father is not married to the mother, then the only option is to establish paternity. The law provides for the possibility of including information at the request of a citizen and against his will. The main condition is the requirement to enter the data of one of the parents.

When establishing paternity voluntarily, the biological father must:

apply to the authorized body with a joint application;
contact the civil registry office with a personal statement and an order from the district guardianship department.

The citizen pays the fee, submits an application and receives a certificate of paternity within 1 hour.

Detailed plan

As was said a little earlier, both parents of a joint child are required to write their appeal to the registry office. In cases where the parents’ statement cannot be compiled together, they fill it out in two separate sheets. The signing of the application by a parent who did not have the opportunity to be present at the time of filing the application must take place before a notary. Establishment of voluntary paternity is not determined by time limits; this can happen at any age of the baby.

Rules for establishing paternity

Changing data in children's documents is a complex procedure in the absence of the consent of at least one of the parents. A lawsuit is a dispute between lawyers. Participation in the proceedings of citizens who do not have experience in such matters without a representative is inappropriate.

To resolve the issue in your favor, you can use the following tips. Establishing paternity in court: step-by-step instructions.

The procedure for establishing paternity in court includes determining the proper plaintiff. The law limits the list of citizens who can apply to the court. The proper plaintiff is:

biological father;
mother;
child over 18 years of age;
guardian of an incapacitated parent;
guardian of a minor child.

Other citizens are deprived of the right to go to court on this issue. Social workers and close relatives cannot initiate the process.

The law (Article 49 of the RF IC) indicates the possibility of providing a variety of evidence that can reliably indicate the origin of the child from the specified man.

The following are accepted as evidence (Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court No. 16 of 2021):

medical documentation about pregnancy and childbirth;
explanations of the parties;
testimony of third parties;
photos;
video shooting;
correspondence in instant messengers, social networks, SMS;
bank statements with the transfer of funds for child support from a man;
examination results.

Establishing paternity through the court includes preparing a statement of claim. The document must include the following information:

name and address of the judicial authority;
information about the process initiator;
defendant's details;
third parties (guardianship department and registry office);
name of the application;
detailed information on the grounds for establishing paternity;
presence/absence of actual marital relations;
presence/absence of close relationship;
presence/absence of help from a man during pregnancy;
recognition of the child as the biological father after childbirth;
reference to law;
claims, including withholding of material security;
list of attached documentation;
date and signature of the initiator.

The information is presented in a condensed form. There is no need to describe the situation overly emotionally and include piquant descriptions.

Errors, blots, and corrections are not allowed.

Statement

A peaceful application requesting voluntary recognition of a child as one’s own must necessarily indicate:

personal address, exact nationality, deciphered date of birth, as well as the citizenship of both parents;
the child’s full name, surname and patronymic, as well as his gender and place of birth;
exact details from the Civil Registry Office about the baby (all such data is needed when establishing a relationship immediately after confirming the birth);
detailed details from the Registry Office about the process of registering a marriage (when the marriage relationship was concluded immediately after the birth of the child);
full name, which will be established for the baby after his registration;
original details of both spouses’ passports.

Cost of establishing paternity through court

Let's consider what costs a person initiating the process of establishing paternity in court will incur in 2021:

Drawing up a statement of claim. Depending on the region, the claim will cost the applicant from 1,500 rubles. up to 3,000 rub.
Representation of a lawyer in court. Depending on the law firm, the region of application, and the lawyer’s experience, the amount can vary from 10,000 rubles. up to 50,000 rub.
Carrying out an examination. The cost of the study, which includes drawing up a report for the court, starts from 16,500 rubles.
The amount of state duty for the court is 300 rubles.
When appealing a court decision, the state fee will be 150 rubles.
The fee for registering data in the civil registry office is 1000 rubles.

It is quite difficult to establish the origin of a child against the will of the parent. To do this, you need to collect an impressive package of documents, draw up a competent application, and conduct an examination. The total cost of the process in 2021 will be at least 30,000 rubles.