§1904.__Report of genetic testing

1.__Report; self-authenticating.__A report of genetic testing must be in a record and signed under penalty of perjury by a designee of the testing laboratory. A report made under the requirements of this subchapter is self-authenticating.

2.__Documentation.__Documentation from the testing laboratory of the following information is sufficient to establish a reliable chain of custody that allows the results of genetic testing to be admissible without testimony:

A.__The names and photographs of the individuals whose specimens have been taken;

B.__The names of the individuals who collected the specimens;

C.__The places and dates the specimens were collected;

D.__The names of the individuals who received the specimens in the testing laboratory; and

E.__The dates the specimens were received.

Comment

(This is section 504 of the UPA.)

Source: 42 U.S.C. § 666(a)(5)(F) requiring genetic testing in certain cases, see Appendix: Federal IV-D Statute Relating to Parentage, infra.

Subsection (b) is designed to indicate that in civil trials only a minimal showing of reliability of the chain of custody is needed. This avoids evidentiary problems, such as arguments modeled on criminal cases in which the chain of evidence is crucial. If an element of the chain is missing, such a defect may be corrected by affidavit or other testimony as to the reliability of the sample. For example, samples from a deceased individual may be obtained from a coroner's office and a picture of the individual need not be taken. In this case, proof of the chain of custody of the body maintained by the coroner may be provided.

§1905.__Genetic testing results; rebuttal