I need to find the law for establishing paternity in the Dominican Republic. I haven't been able to find the actual text to Dominican laws anywhere. Any suggestions?
If you mean paternity outside of marriage, it is governed by Law 985 of 1945 and by Articles 14 and 21 of the Code of Minors. It can only be established by court order or by a formal acknowledgment by the father.
Acknowlegment by the father must be done before the ?Oficial de Estado Civil? (official in charge of the civil registry of births, marriages, deaths, etc.), before a Notary or by will. In case of death or incapacity of the father, the paternal grandfather can do the acknowledgment or the paternal grandmother, in the absence of the grandfather.
The suit to establish paternity may be initiated by the mother, or in case of the death or incapacity of the mother, by any maternal relative.
Sorry to cut in on this but I am wondering how will it take to a dna test (Paternity ) there in the Dominican. This guy I like here in the us is from there and he went there last year and now this lady is claiming she has his baby, does it cost alot there to do this?
Can the "Acknowledgement" or "Court Order" be done before the birth of the child (if DNA test proves the alleged individual is the father? and will this guarantee that the individual will be named as the father on the child's birth certificate? or is there another procedure to get the father's name on the certificate
Thanks
NMS
-13 with the wind-chill .. boy do I want to be there!!!
I see little has changed since my 4 months hiatus. PEOPLE are still MUCKING-UP serious posts.
There should be a rule -- no mucking-up posts in the Legal Forum. It dosen't look good on the legal profession. Mr Guzman has to post his response among all the smut and users have to shift through all the smut to read his responses.
If you ask a professional to contribute to the Boards ... I believe that you own him the courtesy of a professional environment in which to do it.
The prerequisite to legal paternity anywhere is a live baby. A born live baby operates to effectuate paternity (from the Greek word "patera" meaning "father") upon the father with that baby's first breath. Legal paternity must then be established. Procedures for establishing legal paternity and the rights and responsibilities that go with it are different throughout the world. Here in the US the general rule is that once legal paternity is established, the father is on the hook for his share of prenatal expenses.
I had trouble understanding your post. And I don't know if it is in reference to the question that I asked Mr Guzman.
But in the USA it is possible for a "father" to have DNA testing done on a fetus (amino) to determine if he is the biological parent of the child. With this evidence he would then seek a court order declaring that he is in fact the biological father of the unborn child. This has implications in terms of parental consent to medical treatment on the fetus etc.
Depending on the State, equipped with the court ordered Declaration, he would them serve the legal staff of the hospital where the child is born and demand to have the hospital enter his name as the father of the child in the birth records.
Because on timing, the procedures to have this accomplished must be done BEFORE the birth of the child.
This is the background to the question that I asked Mr Guzman.
Having practiced law for over twenty years and also having represented Cris Colon in numerous paternity suits, that putative father would appear to have no rights whatsoever under Roe vs. Wade. It is solely within the discretion of the woman as to whether she will proceed with a pregnancy within legal limits. At least during that interim I fail to see any interference by the putative father being permitted. What if the man who believes he is the father is not actually the father? How many times would a woman be required to submit to these procedures. Drawing of amniotic fluid carries risks. Its not just a pin prick. As of my last reading of the law here in Illinois, the controlling statute only contemplates tissue and blood for purposes of DNA testing. This however, would not be the first time that science and technology outpaced the glacier like pace of evolving law be it statutory or case law. Conversely, a woman could certainly waive her existing rights and consent to the procedure but I am confident that I could tie something like this up in the courts until such time as a live baby was born. Where does that take us? Back to square one with a live baby for testing of bloood and/or tissue and retroactive paternal obligations. This is only food for thought in a forum I rarely contribute in.
"Los hijos e hijas habidos fuera del matrimonio podr?n ser reconocidos por su padre de manera individual, ya sea al producirse el nacimiento, o por testamento, o mediante acto aut?ntico.
P?rrafo I: El reconocimiento puede preceder al nacimiento del hijo o hija, o puede suceder al fallecimiento del hijo o hija, si es que ?stos ?ltimos dejan descendientes.
P?rrafo II: La madre podr? proceder a demandar judicialmente el reconocimiento de un hijo o hija desde su nacimiento hasta su mayor?a de edad."
Free Translation:
Art. 21 of the Code of Minors:
"Children born out of wedlock may be acknowledged by their father individually at the moment of birth (actually at the time of registering the birth at the civil registry), or by testament or by a notarial act.
Paragraph I: The acknowledgment may precede the birth of the child, or may be done after the death of the child, if the child has descendants.
Paragraph II: The mother may proceed to sue for the acknowledgment of paternity of her child from the time of birth until the child reaches legal age (18 in the DR)"
Therefore, voluntary acknowledgment by the father before birth is possible. If there is a positive conflict about who the real father is (that is, two men claiming to be the father of the same child), the acknowledgment may be declared invalid by the court.
The mother, however, has to wait for the birth of her child to sue the putative father.
The DNA situation in DR has not been answered. Is it or is it not an option in DR and where and how can you do it? I hear it is very expensive, if possible.
Another question is and this is something that happens all the time, what is the responsibility of a man after a woman has opted for an illegal abortion in DR, which is quite common. Is the man responsible for the expenses before an after the abortion? Or is the woman on her own if the man refuses to pay?
You can have DNA testing done in Santo Domingo and Santiago. There is no provision in the statute for prenatal testing.
Since abortion is illegal, it is difficult to see how a man can be forced to pay for it!
A Child Court judge once told me that court judges could question the veracity of a DNA test done here. It would be best if the test were carried out by a US lab.
I also have a question on this topic:
So according to the Law Mr. Guzman is quoting, a woman cannot just use the (original) ID of someone to say that her child is his son?