A medical procedure conducted within a healthcare facility to establish a biological relationship between a putative father and a child involves analyzing DNA samples. This process definitively identifies whether an individual is the biological father. For example, a newborn’s blood sample and a swab from the potential father’s cheek can be analyzed to determine paternity with a high degree of accuracy.
Establishing legal parentage through testing offers numerous advantages, including securing inheritance rights, child support obligations, and access to medical records. Historically, determining parentage was reliant on physical resemblance and circumstantial evidence. Modern DNA testing offers a more precise and objective method, eliminating uncertainty and providing legal and emotional clarity.