A young mother enjoying the park walk in the morning, drinking a hot tea, with her little child relaxing in his baby trolley.

The recently decided case of KL v BA (Parental Responsibility) [2025] EWHC 102 has become a significant milestone in family law.

The case looked at the issue of whether a ‘father’ who was not married to the child’s mother, but named on the child’s birth certificate as the father, but upon subsequent genetic testing was not actually found to be the child’s biological father, should have his acquisition of parental responsibility void ab initio, so that it never had any legal effect.

Background

The dispute involved a child whose birth was registered by both parents. KL was named on the birth certificate as the child’s father. However, subsequent genetic testing showed that he was not the child’s biological father. After separation, the child continued to spend time with KL, until this was stopped by the mother. She sought to have KL’s parental responsibility removed.

Key Considerations

The court’s deliberations were guided by several factors:

  • the biological link identifies a man as the father of a child. When that is displaced, the status of the man as the ‘father’ cannot continue.
  • a man who is not the biological or legal father of a child cannot acquire parental responsibility because of a mistake or a misrepresentation in registering the birth
  • the registration of the birth is simply the evidence of parentage and, where an issue arises about that parentage, that must be resolved by the court

Outcome

Having heard the legal arguments, the court decided that KL had not acquired parental responsibility when he was mistakenly registered as the child’s father on her birth certificate and therefore he had never held parental responsibility for the child. It was therefore not necessary to remove his parental responsibility from him.

Implications for Future Cases

This case sets an important precedent for future parental responsibility disputes where a ‘Father’ registered on a birth certificate is not found to be the child’s biological father and shows the complex legal issues that can arise when genetic testing shows that a non-biological father has been mistakenly registered on a child’s birth certificate.

If the information we’ve shared here is relevant to you, or if you need help from our Family Law team in another area, please get in touch today on 0345 450 5558 or enquiries@stephens-scown.co.uk