Kline v. Holmes (Kansas 2018)

The presumption of paternity is not conclusive and can be rebutted with clear and convincing evidence. The rebuttal can also be overcome. In this case, the district court established parentage for a child who was born to a same-sex couple by applying the presumption that the “notorious” presumption. The biological mother of the child appealed, arguing that the presumption didn’t apply to the other parent, that the district court incorrectly treated the presumption as conclusive, and even so, that evidence rebutted the presumption. The court of appeals found that prior case law established that the paternity presumptions can be used to establish paternity for same-sex parents. However, the court of appeals found that the district court did improperly treat the presumption as conclusive and remanded the case for further findings with respect to the rebuttal of the presumption and if the rebuttal was overcome.