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Mother was married to Spouse when Child was born. Spouse was listed on the birth certificate, lived with Child for four years, claimed Child as a dependent, and told relatives that Child was Spouse's child. During a separation, Mother told Spouse that another man, Bio Parent, might be Child's biological father. Bio Parent took a private genetic test showing a 99.9 percent probability of parentage and then signed a voluntary acknowledgment of parentage with Mother at a state agency. Spouse did not know about the acknowledgment until eight months later.
Mother later seeks child support from Spouse in the divorce case and from Bio Parent in a separate parentage proceeding. Spouse denies any duty to support Child because of the genetic test and acknowledgment. Bio Parent argues that the acknowledgment should be rescinded because Mother pressured Bio Parent to sign quickly and because Child has always treated Spouse as a parent. The state follows a parentage act that recognizes a marital presumption, voluntary acknowledgments, genetic evidence, and limited equitable estoppel doctrines.
Discuss who may be treated as Child's legal parent or parents for support purposes, what challenges may be available to the acknowledgment or marital presumption, and why biological parentage is not always the only issue.