Issue: № 5, 2026
Doi: https://doi.org/10.37634/efp.2026.5.10p
Introduction. Recognition of paternity belongs to the category of family law disputes in which the child’s personal status is directly linked to the emergence of mutual rights and obligations between the child and the parents. Where a foreign element is present, such disputes acquire significance for private international law, since they require a prior determination of the law applicable to the establishment of the child’s origin. The relevance of the study lies in the fact that the determination of the applicable law affects not only the legal grounds for recognition of paternity, but also issues of proof, assessment of foreign documents, obtaining evidence abroad, and the scope of judicial protection. The purpose of the paper is to clarify the peculiarities of determining the applicable law in cases concerning recognition of paternity with a foreign element and to analyse certain issues of law application arising in the course of adjudication of such disputes. Results. The paper substantiates that disputes concerning recognition of paternity with a foreign element are of both family-law and conflict-of-laws nature. It is established that Article 65 of the Law of Ukraine “On Private International Law” determines the child’s personal law at the time of birth as the principal connecting factor for establishing and contesting paternity. At the same time, determination of the applicable law alone is insufficient for the proper resolution of the dispute, since it must be combined with the proper substantive qualification of the claim under the Family Code of Ukraine. Particular attention is paid to the distinction between recognition of paternity, contestation of paternity, and combined claims involving both the exclusion of a previous record of paternity and the recognition of another person’s paternity. The paper also examines judicial practice concerning the assessment of foreign documents, including a Belgian prenatal recognition certificate, and procedural issues related to obtaining evidence abroad. Conclusions. It is concluded that effective resolution of disputes concerning recognition of paternity with a foreign element requires a comprehensive approach combining conflict-of-laws regulation, substantive qualification of the claim, and evidentiary procedure. Foreign documents concerning the child’s origin may have significant evidentiary value, but their legal effect within the domestic legal order requires separate judicial assessment. Likewise, a genetic expert report does not replace proper legal qualification of the claim and cannot by itself determine the scope of judicial protection.
Keywords : recognition of paternity, foreign element, child’s personal law, applicable law, private international law
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