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08
Jun
2022

Declaration of parentage: confirming family ancestry and biological parentage following adoption

The recent family law case of Ms L; Ms M (Declaration of Parentage) [2022] EWFC 38 determined fundamental questions about ‘who is my parent?’. The legal proceedings concerned applications by two women who had been adopted as babies and whether decades later they could obtain declarations of parentage to resolve their family ancestry, confirm the identities of their biological fathers and rectify their original birth certificates to add the name of their birth father. In making these applications, the two women gave compelling evidence about the importance of obtaining declarations of parentage notwithstanding being adopted to resolve their personal identities and lineage, aid their long-term psychological welfare and acquire dual citizenship.
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03
Feb
2022

International surrogacy law: legal parentage, citizenship, time limits and parental orders

The recent case of Re X, Y and Z (Children: Parental Orders: Time Limit) [2022] highlights the very real legal issues and problems that can arise when intended parents enter into international surrogacy arrangements. In Re X, the intended parents experienced unforeseen difficulties with their three US surrogate born children’s legal parentage, citizenship and residence when they encountered a different system of law in Denmark where they were living. They also had to navigate complex legal issues whilst applying for parental orders in the English Family Court to resolve their children’s legal parentage and legally secure their children’s care arrangements upon relocating to the UK.
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Family Playing on Beach
30
Nov
2021

Declaration of Parentage: resolving family ancestry, questions about parentage and birth certificates

Millions of people around the world are embracing direct-to-consumer DNA tests to explore personal ancestry and resolve issues about genetic identity, parentage and status. They can create complex issues about biological and legal parentage as increasing numbers of people seek to resolve their parentage under English law and rectify birth certificates. This is in turn bringing into focus the significance of applications for Declarations of Parentage in the English Family Court.
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28
Jul
2020

Direct to consumer genetic testing: a family and fertility law perspective

A decision to undertake a direct to consumer genetic test is a big step. In addition to offering insight into an individual’s health and disease risk, it can help trace a biological parent and biological relatives. In doing so, it can raise complex and challenging legal and wider issues about paternity and maternity, infidelity, the nature of family relationships, birth certificates, financial and inheritance claims and citizenship and nationality.
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