Law No. 14,138/2021 was enacted, allowing judges to order DNA testing on blood relatives if the alleged father has died or there is no information about his whereabouts. Refusal to perform the test will result in presumption of paternity.
In practice, requests for DNA testing on close relatives were already being made, even with the presumption of paternity, if there was other evidence in the case file that demonstrated paternity. With the new law, a mere refusal will result in the presumption of paternity, regardless of the evidence.
The new law, therefore, only serves to reinforce a situation already in place and avoid any source of discussion on the topic.
