“Openly Held Out” Means To Acknowledge Publically A Child

The biological father of child died intestate and the mother of the child petitioned to administer the estate and for a declaration that the child was the father’s heir. Genetic testing resulted in finding a 99.9996 probability that the decedent was the father of the child but the trial court denied both petitions.

In Estate of Britel, the intermediate California appellate court affirmed holding that proof of paternity by clear and convincing evidence that the father “has openly held out the child as his own” requires “an unconcealed affirmative representation of paternity in open view,” a requirement unmet in this case where the father’s only statements were made privately to a friend, and that the statutory test does not violate the equal protection rights of children who can prove paternity through genetic testing.

Special thanks to William LaPiana (Professor of Law, New York Law School) for bringing this case to my attention.