With the widespread availability of DNA test kits, anyone in New Jersey can easily and inexpensively determine paternity. With advances in technology, also comes the need to update laws to reflect these advances.

One such area of law that is currently being developed involves child support issues concerning fathers who unknowingly raise children who are not their own. The law is not consistent, varying from state to state.

As always, the best interest of the child is the main concern in determining whether a father can seek redress. Specifically, courts will consider whether the child will be harmed if the father seeks compensation for the financial support he provided while caring for a child he mistakenly believed was his own.

In general, most courts are not willing to allow such fathers to seek reimbursement, deciding for several reasons. However, this determination will depend on the individual circumstances of each particular case.

Take for example a recent case that is making its way through the court system. Unbeknownst to a husband, his wife of six years had an affair that resulted in her giving birth to a baby girl. For many years he believed that the child was his, and he raised her as her own. However, as the years went by he began to have suspicions that she was not his biological daughter.

He administered a paternity test and discovered that his hunch had been correct. Upon confronting his wife, he discovered the truth about her affair with her business partner. The two divorced soon thereafter, and a paternity test on the business partner proved almost 100 percent that the girl was his biological daughter.

The husband then brought a lawsuit seeking child support compensation from the biological father. The lower court went along with the precedents gathered from several different states, and decided that the best interest of the child outweighed the financial interests of the father who raised her.

This week that ruling was unanimously overturned. The appeals court was not convinced that the now 19-year-old daughter would be harmed if her biological father was forced to pay back child support. They believe that she probably already knows, and fully understands, the circumstances of her birth. This is because the facts were made public by both parents in the divorce proceeding, and this case has been ongoing now for several years.

Source: Fox News, "Connecticut man can seek payment from 19-year-old child's real father, judge rules," Feb. 2, 2012