- What is paternity? Paternity refers to the
relationship between a child and his or her biological father.
-
How old does the child have to be for a DNA test? There are
no age requirements for DNA testing. The child
can be as young as one day old but wait at least 1 hour
after the baby is born before swabbing.
- How are the DNA samples collected? Your sample is
taken using a cheek swab which is also called a buccal swab (the
buccal cells in the cheek area are highly concentrated with DNA).
There is no difference between DNA taken from a cheek swab when
compared to DNA taken from blood, for the purpose of paternity
testing. Our Home DNA kits are tested identically as a
legal chain of custody test. The AABB does not accredit home kit
tests because the sample collection is not in accordance with
their sample collection standards. In summary, the AABB requires
the following for an accredited legal chain of custody test which
is different from a self collected (home) test kit:
- All biologic samples shall be collected by persons with no
interest in the outcome of the test.
- Photocopy of government issue identification or photograph
of the tested parties.
- Collected samples must be sealed in a tamper proof package
by the person verifying the collection.
- Tested participants cannot package or transfer their own
sample.
- What is the definition of "Alleged Father"?
To assert to be true; affirm: male who
is asserted to be the biological father of a child. Another
example: "The alleged father was
proven not to be the biological
father of the child upon completion of the DNA test."
- What if the alleged fathers are related? If the
alleged fathers are related as brothers, father/son, or
uncle/nephew, or if the alleged father is related to the child's
mother, then all related alleged fathers must be tested at
the same time. This information must be disclosed at the
time of purchase to reduce the possibility of implicating the
wrong person. If the alleged fathers are identical twins,
there is no way to determine which twin is the father of the child.
- What is the chain of custody?
Results from home DNA tests are normally
not guaranteed admissible in a court
of law due to the lack of the "chain of custody".
The chain of custody refers to the various chain of "hands" that
the individual sample passes through. A legal chain of custody
requires the samples to be collected in the presence of a third
neutral party at a lab or hospital facility where all parties
are photographed to verify their identity. You can provide
the results of a home test to an attorney or judge but it may
not be accepted if the findings are disputed.
- The alleged father and child are at
different locations. Can I have the testing kit sent to
more than one location? Yes, we can ship to multiple
locations at an additional cost. Please
see this link to have your
kit mailed to additional locations.
- What assurance do I have that the test will be run
correctly and will be accurate? All of the testing is performed by an accredited laboratory in accordance
with the standards set forth by the Relationship Committee of the American
Association of Blood Banks (AABB). The
AABB inspects and accredits paternity testing laboratories based on the
standards adopted and agreed upon by the Parentage Committee. The AABB
obtains and reviews the procedures used by accredited
laboratories and sends an inspector to each laboratory to
perform an on-site inspection of equipment, laboratory
procedures, paternity cases, and calculations, to make certain
that everything is being performed according to proper
scientific protocol.
- What is the cost of the test? Please refer to the order page
for the price of each test.
- How long will my test take? Please refer to the status page for your test timeline.
- How will I receive my results? Results can be
obtained by mail, email, fax, and phone. An authorization
form provided with each kit allows you to specify the method of
result notification. The mail option provides you with a
formal original signed by the lab director of an AABB accredited
lab.
- What if I have unanswered questions?
If you still have
questions, please call us at (817) 287-0509 or send an email to
Info@MotherlessPaternity.com.
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