AMANDA C. WATSON
v.
CHAD SPENCER AND MICHAEL J. HEATHER
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Amanda C. Watson appeals a trial court's Order of Paternity establishing Chad Spencer as the father of her minor child based on presumptive paternity under Florida law. The appellate court reversed, finding that the trial court's own finding of fraud in the voluntary acknowledgement of paternity necessarily rebutted the presumption, requiring further proceedings to determine legal paternity.
The court reversed and remanded, holding that the trial court's explicit finding of fraud rebutted the presumption of paternity, and that further proceedings were necessary to determine legal paternity. A presumption of paternity cannot rest on a false affidavit.
[1] An explicit trial court finding of fraud rebutts a presumption of paternity based on a voluntary acknowledgement, even absent conclusive evidence satisfying the statutory…
Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAmanda C. Watson challenged a paternity finding that established Chad Spencer as the natural father of her minor child, C.H.S., based on a voluntary a…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Acknowledgment Of Paternity cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
Amanda C. Watson timely appeals the trial court’s Order of Paternity finding Chad Spencer was the natural parent and father of her minor child, C.H.S., based on presumptive paternity under section 742.10(1), Florida Statutes (2023). The mother asserts the trial court erred in finding that the voluntary acknowledgement of paternity was the product of her undisputed fraud while simultaneously holding there was no conclusive evidence to rebut the presumption of paternity in accordance with section 742.10(4), Florida Statutes. We agree. See A.D.A. v. D.M.F., 204 So. 3d 523, 528 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016) (finding a mother could support a challenge to presumptive paternity based on fraud where the challenge was brought by a putative father).
Based upon the trial court’s explicit finding of fraud, the presumption of paternity was rebutted by the child’s putative father. See id. at 527 (“A presumption of paternity cannot rest on a false affidavit.”). Once the presumption was rebutted, further proceedings were necessary to determine legal paternity. We therefore reverse and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion and this Court’s opinion in Heather v. Spencer, 49 Fla. L. Weekly D2129b (Fla. 5th DCA Oct. 18, 2024), the concurrent appeal by the child’s putative father. REVERSED and REMANDED with instructions. LAMBERT, JAY, and KILBANE, JJ., concur. ____________________________ Not final until disposition of any timely and authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or 9.331.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Dep't of Revenue O/b/o T. H. W. v. D. E. B., 312 So. 3d 180 (Fla. 2d DCA 2021)…y if the "father" signed a paternity acknowledgment form unless the court determines that all factors listed in section 742.18(2) existed. - 7 - Price, 958 So. 2d at 1046 (emphasis omitted); see Ceasar, 188 So. 3d at 961; see also A.D.A. v. D.M.F., 204 So. 3d 523, 527 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016) ("A voluntary acknowledgement [of paternity] constitutes an establishment of paternity that can only be challenged in court 'on the basis of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact, with the burden of proof upon the chall…
Authorities Cited
- A.D.A. v. D.M.F., 204 So. 3d 523 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016)