Blood tests may be used to exclude some men from being the
fathers of some children. There are four main blood types: A, B,
AB (A-B), and O. When two people have a child together, their
blood types determine the blood type of their child. All
children have the right to know who both of their parents are.
If a child is born to parents who aren't married or who are no
longer involved with one another by the time the child is born,
the child may not know who his or her father is. 'Paternity'
means fatherhood. 'Establishing paternity' means identifying the
father of a child and legally determining that he is the father.
Establishing paternity recognizes a father's rights and
responsibilities. The biological father's rights include having
his name on the child's birth certificate, shared parental
responsibility, the right to request custody, and the right to
request visitation. |Legitimacy and paternity A child is
considered legitimate if his or her parents were married at the
time he or she was born. If a child's