Who The Father Is On Paper
ORC 3111.27 — sixty days to rescind, and a year for the only other way out
Signing the affidavit at the hospital is often described as putting a name on the birth certificate. What it is under the chapter is a determination of paternity, and once it becomes final it is not a presumption that somebody argues about later. It is final and enforceable unless it is rescinded, and the routes to rescinding it are short and are on a clock.
Final means final, and the word presumption stops applying. An acknowledgment of paternity that becomes final under the chapter is not a presumption. It is a final and enforceable determination of paternity, unless it is rescinded under the sections that allow that. A presumption can be rebutted with evidence; a final determination is undone by a procedure, and the procedure has periods on it.
Sixty days, from the latest signature rather than from the birth. One of the persons who signed the affidavit filed with the central paternity registry may initiate an action to rescind it not later than sixty days after the date of the latest signature on it. That date is the one on the form, and it is not always the date of the birth or the date anybody took it in.
After that there is one year, and it needs a reason. Once the acknowledgment has become final, an action to rescind may be brought not later than one year after it became final, and only on the basis of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact. Those three are the whole of the list. It may be brought by either person who signed, by a man presumed to be the father who did not sign, or by a guardian or legal custodian of the child.
| The route | The period | What it takes |
|---|---|---|
| The routeRescind after signing | The periodNot later than sixty days after the latest signature | What it takesOne of the persons who signed |
| The routeRescind after it is final | The periodNot later than one year after it became final | What it takesFraud, duress, or material mistake of fact |
The affidavit itself carries the warning. The department prepares the form with the rights and responsibilities of, and the due process safeguards afforded to, a person who acknowledges that he is the natural father, in boldface type at the top, including that either parent may rescind and that an action may be brought under the section that allows it.
The presumptions that arise from a marriage, genetic testing and who may request it, an action to establish paternity where nothing was signed, and the support and parenting consequences that follow a determination are each their own part of these chapters and are not set out here. Whether a particular acknowledgment is final, and whether a particular ground for rescission is made out, are questions for a licensed Ohio attorney, and the child support enforcement agency in the county holds the affidavit process.
Sources for this section (4)
- ORC 3111.03 — Presumption of paternity
- ORC 3111.27 — Rescinding an acknowledgment of paternity, and the sixty days
- ORC 3111.28 — An action to rescind an acknowledgment after it has become final
- ORC 3111.31 — The acknowledgment of paternity affidavit form
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Talk to a licensed Ohio attorney about your situation.