J.L.G. v. M.F.D.
Annotate this CaseIn 2009, Janet Gates gave birth to a daughter, BNY. Douglas Young was named on the child’s birth certificate as the child’s father and held himself out as the child’s father. In 2012, Gates sought primary residential custody of BNY. In this Silver Bow County proceeding, the parties stipulated to participate in DNA paternity testing, which indicated a “99.99% probability” that Young was BNY’s natural father. Gates subsequently brought an action in Madison County requesting that Michael Donahue undergo a paternity test to determine if Donahue was BNY’s father. Gates then moved for an order requiring Donahue to undergo a blood DNA test and Young to undergo a sterility test. The Madison County district court granted Donahue’s motion to dismiss and denied Gates’ motion for paternity and sterility tests. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court did not err in granting Donahue’s motion to dismiss, as Gates failed to rebut the presumption of paternity in favor of Young, and judicial estoppel provided an independent and appropriate basis for the district court’s order dismissing Gates’ action.
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