Biological fathers will be able to more easily assert their rights to paternity in the legal field in the future. The Bundestag passed the corresponding law on Thursday evening, thereby implementing a ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court.
The judges in Karlsruhe demanded the implementation of an effective procedure so that biological fathers not married to the child’s mother could declare their legal paternity. Previously, this was impossible if a social and family bond existed between the child and the legal father — that is, if the man carried responsibility for the child without being the biological father.
Key points of the reform
Thanks to the reform, a biological father can now contest paternity if he has a close bond with the child or if a former relationship with the child was interrupted through no fault of his own. Another provision is intended to prevent a race for paternity: if the biological father has already initiated a procedure to establish paternity in court, no other man will be able to recognize paternity until a decision is made.
Furthermore, the right to a voice for the child itself is being expanded: if the child has reached the age of 14, they can prevent a situation in which the mother imposes another man as the legal father instead of the biological one.Source: dpa
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