Yes, when the mother is Jewish and married to a Jewish man, the courts will almost certainly not suggest /order D.N.A. testing to establish paternity, for fear of tainting the child with being illegitimate , or a Bastard (‘mamzer’). In Jewish law a child born out of a prohibited relationship – such as that of a married woman with a man other than her husband – has the inferior status of a ‘mamzer.’ Even if the mother is Jewish and married to a non-Jew , where the risk of illegitimacy does not arise, the courts will probably still be reluctant to allow D.N.A. testing to establish paternity to avoid the risk of the child losing a ‘psychological’ father should the results reveal no biological link.

In contrast, where the mother is single, and the alleged father is either single or married , there is no inbuilt bias against paternity testing . However , where the alleged father objects to D.N.A. testing, the court can regard him as concealing evidence . His refusal to undergo testing can be used against him and the court can give a judgment declaring him to be the father even though he has not taken the test.