TRIO. In most cases, the paternity test is carried out on three individuals: the mother, the child and the putative father.
This is because, as we said above, the child has inherited 50% of its DNA from the mother and 50% from its father.
DUO. In certain situations, however, it is possible to perform tests positively even when the mother is not available; however, the mother's consent is always necessary if the child is a minor. When the mother is not available for testing, the process is technically more complex because more analyses must be performed. However, the results are equally reliable as those of tests performed on three individuals.
TEST DURING PREGNANCY. Depending on how the samples are taken, the test can be invasive or non-invasive. Invasive tests like amniocentesis and Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS) allow the sampling and testing of foetal DNA. The risks are pregnancy loss which is higher following CVS than amniocentesis because CVS is performed at an earlier gestational age, when the risk of foetal loss is higher.
Non-invasive tests analyse traces of the child's DNA in a blood sample from the mother.
Tests on foetal DNA in mother's blood are now technically possible, but the methods involved have not yet been validated by the international forensic community.
TEST WHEN PUTATIVE FATHER IS DECEASED. In some cases, the putative father may be deceased, or simply unavailable.
In these cases, it is possible to determine paternity by comparing the child’s DNA with another sibling, male or female, or the grandparents of the deceased father.
Alternatively, it may be possible to analyse biological samples that had been collected for histological analyses from the individual when he was still alive, e.g. after surgery or biopsies.
In the worst case scenario, the only way to resolve the question of paternity may be to exhume the deceased's body. In all of these cases, since the biological samples belong to an individual who is no longer able to give his consent, only a civil Judge can allow the test to be performed.
“The paternity test requires the consent
of all legally entitled parties”
“Prenatal paternity tests
have advantages and disadvantages”
“Paternity tests when the putative father is deceased are possible under Court order only”
