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ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF PATERNITY

NOTES AND INSTRUCTIONS

Each parent should carefully read all notes and instructions before completing and signing the Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) form.

Establishment of paternity means the establishment of a genetic parent-child relationship. The AOP shall be signed under penalty of perjury by the

woman (mother/parent) who gives birth to a child and a man (father/parent), not her spouse, claiming to be the genetic father of the child seeking to

establish paternity.

SINGLE MOTHER: When a proper AOP is received by the Office of Data, Research, and Vital Statistics, the father/parent will be added to

the child’s Certificate of Live Birth.

A. The signatories understand that an acknowledgment of paternity is the equivalent of a court determination of paternity of the child and that a

challenge to the acknowledgment is permitted only under limited circumstances and is barred after two years.

MOTHER IS OR WAS FORMERLY MARRIED: When a mother is or was married within 300 days of the birth of the child, the name of

the spouse shall be entered on the Certificate of Live Birth, including situations when:

A. The spouse may not be the genetic father.

B. The mother has been separated (legally or otherwise) from the spouse, regardless of the period of the separation.

C. The mother was legally married or attempted to marry, and the child is born within 300 days after the termination of the marriage (unless the

final divorce decree specifies that the spouse is not the natural father).

AFFIDAVIT OF DENIAL OF PATERNITY (DOP): If a married or formerly married mother claims that her spouse or ex-spouse is not the

genetic father of the child and the genetic father would like to acknowledge paternity, the spouse may complete a Denial of Parentage (DOP).

At that time, the mother and genetic father must submit an AOP along with the DOP. The AOP and DOP may be filed separately or

simultaneously, but neither is valid unless both are filed with the Office of Data, Research, and Vital Statistics.

LEGAL CITATIONS: Title 19-A Chapter 61: The Maine Parentage Act

“Acknowledged father” means a man who has established parentage by filing the AOP with the Office of Data, Research, and Vital Statistics.

“Adjudicated parent” means a person who has been adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction to be the parent of the child.

“Presumed parent” means a person who is recognized as the parent of the child until that status is rebutted or confirmed in a judicial proceeding.

A person is presumed to be the parent of a child if:

A. The person and the woman giving birth to the child are married to each other and the child is born during the marriage; or

B. The person and the woman giving birth to the child were married to each other and the child is born within 300 days after the marriage is

terminated by death, annulment, divorce or declaration of invalidity or after a decree of separation; or

C. Before the birth of the child, the person and the women giving birth to the child married each other in apparent compliance with law, even if

the attempted marriage is or could be declared invalid, and the child is born during the invalid marriage or within 300 days after its

termination by death, annulment, divorce or declaration of invalidity or after a decree of separation.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PARENTS FOR THE COMPLETION OF AOP:

Each parent must sign in the presence of a notary public and the notary must notarize each signature on page 1.

Each parent must initial and select the appropriate statements of acknowledgment on page 2.

Alterations, erasures, white-outs, cross-outs, write overs, etc., will not be accepted and will invalidate the form.

The completed and notarized Acknowledgment of Paternity form and statements, along with any applicable fees, must be submitted to the

Office of Data, Research, and Vital Statistics at the mailing address provided below:

Data, Research, and Vital Statistics

220 Capitol Street

11 State House Station

Augusta, Maine 04333-0011

NOTES:

The Certificate of Live Birth, including the father/parent information will be available for issuance by the municipality where the child was

born, the municipality where the mother resided at the time of birth and the Office of Data, Research, and Vital Statistics.

The fee for one certified copy of the Certificate of Live Birth is $15.00. Additional copies requested at the same time are $6.00 each.

All forms are available through the DRVS website at

records/forms/index.shtml.

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Form Vs27-A - Acknowledgment Of Paternity (Aop) - Maine Center For Disease Control And Prevention Page 3

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