Texas Child Protection Law Bench Book

2024 version: As effective October 1, 2024

H. Adjudicated Father

A man is an Adjudicated Father if:

•   He has been adjudicated by a court to be the father of a child. Adjudication can be accomplished by an admission of paternity of a child, by filing a pleading to that effect, or by admitting paternity under penalty of perjury during a hearing. Tex. Fam. Code § 160.623.

•   Also, a valid Acknowledgment of Paternity that has been filed with the vital statistics unit is the equivalent of an adjudication of the paternity of a child and confers on the acknowledged father all rights and duties of a parent. Tex. Fam. Code § 160.305(a).