Child Support and Attorney General

In a 2008 case out of Dallas, the Attorney General filed suit to establish child support from an alleged father.The alleged father filed an answer and asserted statute of limitations as an affirmative defense and asked the court to deny genetic testing.

The trial court entered an order dismissing the suit with prejudice and the Attorney General appealed.

The appellate court held that procedurally there is no device such as a motion to dismiss under the rules of civil procedure and that in this case, a motion for summary judgment on the limitations defense would have been the appropriate tool for the alleged father to obtain relief.Because proper procedures were not followed, the court of appeals reversed and remanded the cause back for further proceedings.

Since the wrong motion was filed, the alleged father had to go through further litigation to determine whether he would have to pay child support.