Also known as: presumptions of parentage · paternity presumption · parentage presumption
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A statutory presumption that an individual is the legal parent of a child when the individual is married to the woman who gives birth or satisfies other statutory criteria such as cohabitation and holding the child out as the individual's own. The presumption establishes an immediate parent-child relationship without proof of genetic connection. It remains in force unless overcome by a judicial adjudication or a valid statutory denial of parentage.
Perry Pratt and Paula Pierce married and later divorced. Paula gave birth to a child 250 days after the divorce decree. Perry had no contact with the child. When a biological father petitioned for parentage, the court applied the marital presumption to Perry because the birth occurred within the statutory window after termination of the marriage. The presumption controlled until a court completed an adjudication overcoming it.
Parker Phillips and Phoebe Park entered a same-sex marriage. Phoebe gave birth to twins after Parker consented to the insemination and the couple lived together raising the children. When the relationship ended, Parker sought to avoid support obligations by claiming lack of genetic ties. The court held that the marital presumption attached at birth and could be overcome only through a completed adjudication weighing the child's best interests and the length of the parental relationship.
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A presumption of parentage may be overcome only by an adjudication under Article 6 or a valid denial of parentage under Article 3. Proof of a later genetic link does not automatically displace the presumption. The court must complete the statutory process before the presumption yields.
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No. The presumption turns on whether the marriage remains legally intact at the time of birth or within 300 days after termination by death or divorce. A separation agreement alone does not terminate the marriage or cut off the presumption.
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The presumption arises when the child is born during the marriage or not later than 300 days after the marriage ends by divorce. The timing of the birth relative to the decree controls, regardless of caregiving by another adult or workplace connections.
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No. Genetic evidence permits a claim but does not by itself terminate the existing presumption. Only a completed judicial adjudication or a valid statutory denial shifts legal parentage away from the presumed parent.
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…658, 662 [11 Cal.Rptr. 707].) We observed in dicta in Nicholas H. that it would be appropriate to rebut the section 7611 presumption of parentage if “a court decides that the legal rights and obligations of parenthood should devolve upon an unwilling candidate.” ( In re Nicholas H., supra, 28 Cal.4th 56, 70.) But we decline to apply…