Public Act 096-1074
 
SB2606 EnrolledLRB096 15539 AJO 30769 b


  
    AN ACT concerning civil law.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  
 
 
    Section 5. The Illinois Parentage Act of 1984 is amended  by 
changing Section 11 as follows:
 


    (750 ILCS 45/11)  (from Ch. 40, par. 2511)




    Sec. 11. Tests to determine inherited characteristics. 

    (a) In any action brought under Section 7 to determine the 
existence of the father and child relationship or to declare 
the non-existence of the parent and child relationship, the 
court or Administrative Hearing Officer in an Expedited Child 
Support System shall, prior to the entry of a judgment in the 
case, advise the respondent who appears of the right to request 
an order that the parties and the child submit to 
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) tests to determine inherited 
characteristics. The advisement shall be noted in the record. 
As soon as practicable, the court or Administrative Hearing 
Officer
in an Expedited Child Support System may, and upon 
request of a party
shall, order or direct the mother, child and 
alleged father to
submit to deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) tests 
to determine
inherited characteristics.
If any party refuses to 
submit to the tests, the court may
resolve the
question of 
paternity against that party or enforce its order if the rights

of others and the interests of justice so require.

    (b) The tests shall be conducted by an expert qualified as 
an examiner of
blood or tissue types and appointed by
the 
court.
The expert shall determine the testing procedures. 
However, any
interested party, for good cause shown, in advance 
of the scheduled tests,
may request a hearing to object to the

qualifications of the expert or the testing procedures. The

expert appointed by the court shall testify at the
pre-test 
hearing at the expense of the party requesting the hearing, 
except
as provided in subsection (h) of this Section for an 
indigent party. An
expert not appointed by the court shall 
testify at the pre-test hearing at
the expense of the party 
retaining the expert. Inquiry into an
expert's qualifications 
at the pre-test hearing shall not affect either
parties' right 
to have the expert qualified at trial.

    (b-1) Genetic testing must be of a type reasonably relied 
upon by experts in the field of genetic testing and performed 
in a testing laboratory accredited by the American Association 
of Blood Banks, or a successor to its functions.
    (b-2) A specimen used in genetic testing may consist of one 
or more samples, or a combination of samples, of blood, buccal 
cells, bone, hair, or other body tissue or fluid.
    (b-3) The testing laboratory shall determine the databases 
from which to select frequencies for use in calculation of the 
probability of paternity based on the ethnic or racial group of 
an individual.  If there is disagreement as to the testing 
laboratory's choice, the following procedures apply:
        (1) The individual objecting may require the testing 
    laboratory, within 30 days after receipt of the report of 
    the test, to recalculate the probability of paternity using 
    an ethnic or racial group different from that used by the 
    laboratory.
        (2) The individual objecting to the testing 
    laboratory's initial choice shall:
            (A) if the frequencies are not available to the 
        testing laboratory for the ethnic or racial group 
        requested, provide the requested frequencies compiled 
        in a manner recognized by accrediting bodies; or
            (B) engage another testing laboratory to perform 
        the calculations. 
    (b-4) If, after recalculation using a different ethnic or 
racial group, genetic testing does not rebuttably identify a 
man as the father of a child, an individual who has been tested 
may be required to submit to additional genetic testing. 
    (c) The expert shall prepare a written report of the test

results. If the test results show that the alleged father is 
not excluded,
the report shall contain statistics based upon 
the statistical formula of Combined Paternity Index (CPI) and 
the Probability of Paternity as determined by the probability 
of exclusion (Random Man Not Excluded = RMNE) a combined 
paternity index relating to the probability
of paternity.  The 
expert may be called by the court as a witness to
testify to 
his or her findings and, if called, shall be subject to

cross-examination by the parties. If the test results show that 
the alleged
father is not excluded,
 any party may demand that 
other experts,
qualified as examiners of blood or tissue types, 
perform independent tests
under order of court, including, but 
not limited to, blood types or other
tests of genetic markers 
such as those found by Human Leucocyte Antigen (HLA)
tests.  The 
results of the tests may be offered into evidence. The
number 
and qualifications of the experts shall be determined by the 
court.

    (d) Documentation of the chain of custody of the blood or

tissue samples, accompanied by an affidavit or certification in 
accordance
with Section 1-109 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 
is competent evidence to
establish the chain of custody.

    (e) The report of the test results prepared by the 
appointed expert shall be
made by affidavit or
by
certification 
as provided in Section 1-109 of the Code of Civil Procedure
and 
shall be mailed to all parties.  A proof of service shall be

filed with the court.  The verified
report shall be admitted 
into evidence at trial without foundation testimony
or other 
proof of authenticity or accuracy, unless a written motion

challenging the admissibility of the report is filed by either 
party
within 28 days of receipt of the report, in
which case 
expert testimony shall be required.
A party may
not file such a 
motion challenging the admissibility of the report later than

28 days before commencement of trial. Before trial, the court

shall determine whether the motion is sufficient to deny 
admission of the
report by verification.  Failure to make
that 
timely motion constitutes a waiver of the right to object to

admission by verification and shall not be
grounds for a 
continuance of the hearing to determine paternity.

    (f) Tests taken pursuant to this Section shall have the 
following effect:


        (1) If the court finds that the conclusion of the 
    expert or
experts, as
disclosed by the evidence based upon 
    the tests, is that the alleged father
is not the parent of 
    the child, the question of paternity shall be resolved

    accordingly.


        (2) If the experts disagree in their findings or 
    conclusions, the
question shall be weighed with other 
    competent evidence of paternity.


        (3) If the tests show that the alleged father is
not 
    excluded and that the combined paternity index is at least 
    1,000 to 1, and there is at least a 99.9 percent 
    probability of paternity, the alleged father is presumed to 
    be the father, and this evidence shall be admitted less 
    than 500 to 1,
this evidence shall be admitted by the court 
    and shall be weighed with
other competent evidence of 
    paternity.


        (4) A man identified under paragraph (3) of subsection 
    (f) as the father of the child may rebut the genetic 
    testing results by other genetic testing satisfying the 
    requirements of this Act which:
            (A) excludes the man as a genetic father of the 
        child; or 
            (B) identifies another man as the possible father 
        of the child. If the tests show that the alleged father 
        is not
excluded and that the combined paternity index 
        is at least 500 to 1, the
alleged
father is presumed to 
        be the father, and this evidence shall be admitted.

        This presumption may be rebutted by clear and 
        convincing evidence.

        (5) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, if more 
    than one man is identified by genetic testing as the 
    possible father of the child, the court shall order them to 
    submit to further genetic testing to identify the genetic 
    father.
    (g) (Blank). Any presumption of parentage as set forth in 
Section 5 of this Act
is rebutted if the court finds that the 
conclusion of the expert or experts
excludes
paternity of the 
presumed father.

    (h) The expense of the tests shall be paid by the party
who 
requests the tests, except that the court may apportion the 
costs between the parties, upon request.  Where the tests are 
requested by the party
seeking to establish paternity and that 
party is found to be indigent by
the court, the expense shall 
be paid by the public agency providing
representation; except 
that where a public agency is not providing
representation, the 
expense shall be paid by the county in which the action
is 
brought.  Where the tests are ordered by the court on its own 
motion or
are requested by the alleged or presumed father and 
that father is found to
be indigent by the court, the expense 
shall be paid by the county in which
the action is brought. Any 
part of the expense may be taxed as costs in the
action, except 
that no costs may be taxed against a public agency that has
not 
requested the tests.

    (i) The compensation of each expert witness appointed by 
the court shall
be paid as provided in subsection (h) of this 
Section.  Any part of
the payment may be taxed as costs in the 
action, except that
no costs may be taxed against a public 
agency that has not requested the
services of the expert 
witness.

    (j) Nothing in this Section shall prevent any party from 
obtaining tests
of his or her own blood or tissue independent 
of those ordered by the court
or from
presenting expert 
testimony interpreting those tests or any other blood
tests 
ordered pursuant to this Section. Reports of all the

independent tests, accompanied by affidavit or certification 
pursuant to
Section 1-109 of the Code of Civil Procedure, and 
notice of any expert
witnesses to be called to testify to the 
results of those tests shall be
submitted to all parties at 
least 30 days before any hearing set to
determine the issue of 
parentage.

(Source: P.A. 96-333, eff. 8-11-09; 96-474, eff. 8-14-09.)