this may seem like a harsh result but remember that the law’s number one priority here is protecting the rights of the child, not the rights of the mother or the father. The reason that there is a time limit on contesting paternity is that if you did not have that, then let’s say that that man contests paternity when the kid is 10 years old. Now the KID is the one who is out of luck.
Gfactor
November 11, 2008, 7:10pm
22
It depends on the jurisdiction, actually. Here, for example, is Michigan’s statute:
(2) An order of filiation entered under subsection (1) shall specify the sum to be paid weekly or otherwise, as prescribed in section 5 of the support and parenting time enforcement act, 1982 PA 295, MCL 552.605, until the child reaches the age of 18. Subject to section 5b of the support and parenting time enforcement act, 1982 PA 295, MCL 552.605b, the court may also order support for a child after he or she reaches 18 years of age. In addition to providing for the support of the child, the order shall also provide for the payment of the necessary expenses incurred by or for the mother in connection with her confinement and pregnancy and for the funeral expenses if the child has died, as determined by the court under section 2. **A child support obligation is only retroactive to the date that the paternity complaint was filed **unless any of the following circumstances exist:
(a) The defendant was avoiding service of process.
(b) The defendant threatened or coerced through domestic violence or other means the complainant not to file a proceeding under this act.
(c) The defendant otherwise delayed the imposition of a support obligation.
http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(lrycwk45a4ua5p55o31nscrz) )/mileg.aspx?page=getObject&objectName=mcl-722-717 (Emphasis added).