Germany bans secret paternity tests, orders new law

Karlsruhe, Germany, Feb 14: Germany's Federal Constitutional Court ordered lawmakers to make it easier for men to challenge fatherhood claims as it ruled secret paternity tests were illegal under current laws.

The court in Karlsruhe, which ranks as Germany's highest judicial authority, yesterday said men have a right to know whether they are the biological father of a child and legislators must find a way by April 2008 to allow any man to verify his paternity. Germany's constitutional court is responsible for ensuring fundamental rights enshrined in the country's Basic Law are upheld. It can order legislation accordingly in a system devised after World War Two which is loaded with checks and balances.

Paternity tests using genetic material are currently only legal in Germany with the consent of the child or the mother.

The court ruling followed an appeal by a man who had challenged his paternity of a child. Saliva samples from the man, the mother and the child subsequently showed he was not the biological father.

Reuters