Section 69SFamily Law Act 1975 (Cth)

Presumptions of parentage arising from findings of courts

(1) If:

(a) during the lifetime of a particular person, a prescribed court (other than a court of a prescribed overseas jurisdiction) has:

(i) found expressly that the person is a parent of a particular child; or

(ii) made a finding that it could not have made unless the person was a parent of a particular child; and

(b) the finding has not been altered, set aside or reversed;

the person is conclusively presumed to be a parent of the child.

(1A) If:

(a) during the lifetime of a particular person, a court of a reciprocating jurisdiction within the meaning of section 110 or a jurisdiction mentioned in Schedule 4 or 4A to the regulations has:

(i) found expressly that the person is a parent of a particular child; or

(ii) made a finding that it could not have made unless the person was a parent of a particular child; and

(b) the finding has not been altered, set aside or reversed;

the person is presumed to be a parent of the child.

(2) If:

(a) after the death of a particular person, a prescribed court has:

(i) found expressly that the person was a parent of a particular child; or

(ii) made a finding that it could not have made unless the person was a parent of a particular child; and

(b) the finding has not been altered, set aside or reversed;

the person is presumed to have been a parent of the child.

(3) In this section:

prescribed court means a federal court, a court of a State or Territory or a court of a prescribed overseas jurisdiction.

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 May 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au. Verify the current text against the official source before relying on it.

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