Mistaken paternity is when a man who has been legally declared the father of a child later learns that he is not the father. Texas law allows courts to terminate the parent-child relationship and the duty to pay child support in circumstances of mistaken paternity.
Men who meet the requirements of the law may seek court-ordered genetic testing.
If testing excludes a man as the child’s biological father, the court may terminate the parent-child relationship and the duty to pay future child support.
The man is still responsible for arrears that accrued up to the termination date.
If a relationship has already formed between the man and child, the man can obtain visitation, even though he does not pay child support.
