To get a court-ordered paternity test in NJ, you file a Complaint to Establish Paternity in the Family Division of the Superior Court, and if the judge finds a reasonable basis for the claim, the court orders the mother, the child, and the alleged father to submit DNA samples at a designated laboratory. A result showing a 95% or greater probability creates a legal presumption of paternity and leads directly to a judgment that establishes child support, custody rights, inheritance, and more.
Before going to court, know that testing isn’t always necessary. If both parents agree on who the biological father is, they can sign a Certificate of Parentage at the hospital or later at a child support office, and that signed form carries the same legal weight as a court judgment.1New Jersey Department of Health. Certificate of Parentage Court-ordered testing is for the cases where that agreement doesn’t exist: the alleged father denies paternity, the mother is uncertain, or a government agency needs paternity established to pursue child support.
Who Can Ask the Court for a Paternity Test
New Jersey’s Parentage Act limits standing. The biological mother and any person claiming to be the biological father can file a complaint in Superior Court.2Justia. New Jersey Code 9:17-41 – Parent-Child Relationship Established A child can also seek to establish the relationship, usually through a guardian or legal representative.
Government agencies file these cases too. The New Jersey Division of Family Development and local County Welfare Agencies routinely pursue paternity when a custodial parent receives TANF, Medicaid, or foster care benefits, because those families are automatically referred for child support services when the father hasn’t been legally identified.3New Jersey Child Support. New Jersey Title IV-D Child Support Application
You can file in the county where the child lives, where the alleged father lives or can be found, or, if the father has died, where probate has been or could be opened. A person who had sexual intercourse in New Jersey is also subject to the state’s jurisdiction for any paternity claim arising from that contact.
Filing the Complaint
Start at the Family Division of the Superior Court in the appropriate county. You’ll need a Complaint to Establish Paternity (sometimes called a Complaint for Parentage) together with a supporting certification. Forms are available on the New Jersey Courts website or at the Family Division clerk’s office.
The certification asks for identifying information about the mother, the alleged father, and the child, including the child’s full name, date of birth, and place of birth.4New Jersey Courts. Certification in Support of Establishing Paternity It also asks for a factual statement explaining why you believe the named person is the biological father, which might describe the timing of the relationship or reference informal test results. The judge uses that statement to decide whether testing is warranted, so accuracy matters.
Filing requires a fee paid to the court when you submit the complaint. If you can’t afford it, you can apply for a waiver using Form A, the Certification in Support of Fee Waiver.5New Jersey Courts. How to File for a Fee Waiver – All Courts Once the complaint is accepted, you have to serve the other party. Service means formally delivering the summons and complaint so they have legal notice and a chance to respond.
How the Judge Orders the Test
When the case is handled through a County Welfare Agency, the parties are usually offered a consent conference first to see whether they can resolve the matter voluntarily. If that fails and no testing has been done, the agency or the court orders it.6Justia. New Jersey Code 9:17-48 – Consent Conference, Blood and Genetic Tests
Either party can request genetic testing by filing a sworn statement. The statement either alleges paternity and describes facts showing a reasonable possibility of sexual contact, or denies paternity and describes facts suggesting no such contact occurred. The court can refuse the request only if a party shows good cause. In practice, judges grant these requests readily because DNA resolves the question faster and more reliably than witness testimony.
The order names the laboratory and sets a deadline. If more than one person is alleged to be the father, the court can order testing for all of them and narrow things down as results come back.7Cornell Law Institute. New Jersey Administrative Code 10:110-12.1 – Identification of the Alleged Father
What the Test Looks Like
Court-ordered paternity testing in New Jersey uses a buccal swab. A technician rubs the inside of each person’s cheek to collect cells. It’s painless and takes a few minutes. The mother, the child, and the alleged father all provide samples.
Because the results are evidence, the laboratory follows strict chain-of-custody procedures, documenting every person who handles the samples from collection through analysis. The lab then sends a certified report to the court and to all parties. Court-admissible testing typically costs in the range of $400 to $500 for a standard three-party test, though the exact amount depends on the designated laboratory.
Who Pays
When the case runs through a County Welfare Agency, the agency pays upfront for the testing and then asks the court to order reimbursement from one or both parties. There are two exceptions. If the court finds the alleged father is not the biological father, it can relieve him of the cost. If the alleged father is indigent, the court may still hold him liable but allow for future payment.8Cornell Law Institute. New Jersey Administrative Code 10:110-12.4 – Genetic Testing
If either side disputes the initial results, the party objecting pays in advance for additional testing. In private actions that don’t involve a welfare agency, the court has discretion to allocate costs between the parties.
What the Results Mean
When the test shows a 95% or greater probability that the alleged father is the biological father, New Jersey law creates a presumption of paternity.6Justia. New Jersey Code 9:17-48 – Consent Conference, Blood and Genetic Tests That presumption can only be rebutted by clear and convincing evidence that the results are unreliable in the specific case, which is an extremely difficult bar. A 95%-plus result almost always leads directly to a judgment of paternity.
The judgment is determinative for all purposes. If it conflicts with the child’s existing birth certificate, the court orders the birth record amended to reflect the established father. The judgment can also include provisions for child support, custody, and parenting time.
What Happens If the Alleged Father Refuses
Ignoring a court order for genetic testing is a serious mistake. If a party has been properly served and fails to appear or comply, the court can enter a default order establishing paternity.9Justia. New Jersey Code 9:17-52.1 – Default Order A default judgment carries the same legal weight as one based on DNA evidence. It establishes the father-child relationship and triggers child support obligations without the alleged father ever participating.
Dodging service or simply not showing up doesn’t make the case disappear. It means losing the chance to present your side while the court proceeds on the evidence in front of it.
What a Judgment of Paternity Triggers
Establishing paternity does more than put a name on a birth certificate. It opens a set of legal rights and obligations that run for years. New Jersey’s Parentage Act starts from the principle that the parent-child relationship extends equally to every child regardless of whether the parents were married.10FindLaw. New Jersey Code 9:17-40 – Parent and Child Relationship Defined
Child Support
A paternity judgment almost always produces a child support order calculated under New Jersey’s child support guidelines, which factor in both parents’ income, the number of children, and the parenting time arrangement. The order also addresses medical support, typically by requiring a parent to enroll the child in employer-sponsored health insurance if it’s available at a reasonable cost.
Custody and Parenting Time
Once paternity is established, the father gains the right to seek custody and parenting time through the court. Without a legal determination of paternity, an unmarried father has no enforceable custodial rights. That’s one of the most common reasons fathers pursue paternity establishment themselves.
Inheritance
A child with legally established paternity inherits from the father under New Jersey’s intestate succession laws on the same terms as any other child. The state’s probate code treats a child as the child of their parents regardless of marital status, and the parent-child relationship can be established through the Parentage Act.11Social Security Administration. New Jersey Intestate Succession and Parent-Child Relationship If the father dies without a will, the child is entitled to a share of the estate.
Social Security Survivor Benefits
If the father dies while the child is still a minor, established paternity allows the child to claim Social Security survivor benefits on the father’s earnings record. The Social Security Administration may require proof, which can take the form of a court judgment or an AABB-certified DNA test conducted under chain-of-custody procedures. When no sample from the father is available, the SSA can sometimes accept family relationship testing using DNA from the father’s relatives.
Undoing a Paternity Judgment Is Very Hard
Once the court has entered a judgment of paternity based on genetic testing, the ways to undo it are narrow. The Parentage Act allows an adjudication to be voided only on clear and convincing evidence of fraud, duress, or a material mistake of fact, and the person challenging it bears the burden of proof.2Justia. New Jersey Code 9:17-41 – Parent-Child Relationship Established
Clear and convincing evidence sits well above the ordinary civil standard. If the DNA test came back at 99% and was properly conducted, arguing a material mistake of fact is close to impossible. Fraud claims are more realistic when a party can show tampering with samples or deliberate misidentification. Duress claims require proof of coercion. The practical takeaway: resolve any doubts about biological paternity before you sign a Certificate of Parentage or let a default judgment enter against you, because unwinding an established determination afterward is one of the hardest things to do in New Jersey family law.