Legal Question in Family Law in Massachusetts

Re: Law By Who?

It is not a law but a rebuttable presumption that a husband is the biological father of a child born during the marriage. If that is not the case you should retain an attorney to prove otherwise,if the child does not wish to have him considered the biological father. Good Luck!

Re: Law By Who?

The law states that there will be a presumption that a child born to a married couple is considered the legal child of both married parents. It doesn't necessarily mean biological.

In an era before DNA testing, the law was presumably meant to protect the child.

Are you interested in adopting, or establishing legal parentage?

Re: Law By Who?

This is a presumption of the common law of old England. It remains good law, because we recognize that it has many benefits.

When you ask for free legal advice on an open board, you get the impressions of your question and resulting biases of those who answer. My impression is that you dislike the law. Your reason may be factually understandable or not, but you should understand that MOST of the time, we think that it is GOOD that a man steps up to the plate. We see too many men who avoid responsibility, even when there is no doubt that they are genetically the father. Many of us have seen cases in which a man sought to undo his legal responsibility, regardless of genetics or (in one of my cases) good-faith legal step-parent adoption (I'm divorcing her now, so why should I stay the child's father?).

Thus, on the "face" of a question without underlying facts or reasons for the concern about the legal determination already apparently made, some of us (including me) might be inclined to give the gentleman here the benefit of a doubt. You can consider this negative, or you can consider this an attempt to point out possibly valid viewpoints. Regardless, one might reasonably request that you not demand a certain kind of response to your question.