Section 14.29 Proof by Presumption

• Library: Sources of Proof (2014 Ed.)

B. (§14.29) Proof by Presumption

There is a strong, but rebuttable, presumption in Missouri that a child born to a married woman is the child of the mother’s husband. L.M.K. v. D.E.K., 685 S.W.2d 614 (Mo. App. E.D. 1985). In Shadwick v. Byrd, 867 S.W.2d 231, 235 (Mo. App. W.D. 1993), a mother’s former husband was presumed to be the father of a child even though the child was born five months after a divorce. The burden of proving illegitimacy is on the party asserting it, and the proof must be clear, cogent, and convincing and leave no room for reasonable doubt. In re Estate of Bollier v. Stewart, 684 S.W.2d 67 (Mo. App. E.D. 1984).

If the presumption of legitimacy is rebutted by the...