In a recent case, Passaic County Board of Social Services on
Behalf of T.M. v. A.S., the New Jersey Family Court
encountered a unique set of facts. A mother of two twin girls
sought to establish the paternity of her daughters in order that
the father would be obligated to commence paying child support. She
named the defendant, A.S., as the father and he submitted to DNA
testing. As it turned out, the DNA test established that A.S. was
the father to only one of the twin girls. The
twins had been fathered by two different people, known as
"bipaternal twins," a rare medical phenomenon.
I think most people would agree that the DNA result in this case
merits a "huh?" and Judge Mohammed, who rendered the
decision in this case, thought so too. In general, the court
observed, the DNA testing process is scientifically sound and very
reliable. However, Judge Mohammed also recognized that under the
law, the results of genetic testing create a rebuttable presumption
as to
