767.89.Paternity judgment.

Subch. IX: Paternity · Last amended 2021 · Current through 2025 Wisconsin Act 247 · Last verified September 8, 2026

In one sentenceSection 767.89 makes a paternity judgment determinative for all purposes, lists what it must contain, and requires a report to the state registrar within 30 days.

Full Text of Section 767.89

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(1) EFFECT OF JUDGMENT OR ORDER. A judgment or order of the court determining the existence or nonexistence of paternity is determinative for all purposes.

(2) REPORT TO STATE REGISTRAR. (a) The clerk of court or county child support agency under s. 59.53 (5) shall file with the state registrar, within 30 days after the entry of a judgment or order determining paternity, a report showing the names, dates, and birth places of the child and the father, the social security numbers of the mother, father, and child, and the maiden name of the mother on a form designated by the state registrar, along with the fee set forth in s. 69.22 (5), which the clerk of court or county child support agency shall collect.

(b) If the clerk of court or county child support agency is unable to collect any of the following fees under par. (a), the department shall pay the fee and may not require the county or county child support agency to reimburse the department for the cost: 1. A fee for omitting the father’s name on a birth record under s. 69.15 (3) (a) 1. 2. A fee for changing the father’s name on a birth record under s. 69.15 (3) (a) 2. 3. A fee for inserting the father’s name on a birth record under s. 69.15 (3) (a) 3.

(3) CONTENT OF JUDGMENT OR ORDER. A judgment or order determining paternity shall contain all of the following provisions:

(a) An adjudication of the paternity of the child.

(b) Orders for the legal custody of and periods of physical placement with the child, determined in accordance with s. 767.41.

(bm) The information set forth in s. 767.41 (6) (h).

(c) An order requiring either or both of the parents to contribute to the support of any child of the parties who is less than 18 years old, or any child of the parties who is less than 19 years old if the child is pursuing an accredited course of instruction leading to the acquisition of a high school diploma or its equivalent, determined in accordance with s. 767.511.

(d) A determination as to which parent, if eligible, shall have the right to claim the child as an exemption for federal tax purposes under 26 USC 151 (c).

(e) 1. An order establishing the amount of the father’s obligation to pay or contribute to the reasonable expenses of the mother’s pregnancy and the child’s birth. The amount established may not exceed one-half of the total actual and reasonable pregnancy and birth expenses. The order also shall specify the court’s findings as to whether the father’s income is at or below the poverty line established under 42 USC 9902 (2), and shall specify whether periodic payments are due on the obligation, based on the father’s ability to pay or contribute to those expenses. 2. If the order does not require periodic payments because the father has no present ability to pay or contribute to the expenses, the court may modify the judgment or order at a later date to require periodic payments if the father has the ability to pay at that time.

(f) An order requiring either or both parties to pay or contribute to the costs of the guardian ad litem fees, genetic tests as provided in s. 767.84 (5), and other costs.

(g) An order requiring either party to pay or contribute to the attorney fees of the other party.

(3m) CHANGE OF CHILD’S NAME. (a) Upon the request of both parents, the court shall include in the judgment or order determining paternity an order changing the name of the child to a name agreed upon by the parents.

(b) Except as provided in par. (a), the court may include in the judgment or order determining paternity an order changing the surname of the child to a surname that consists of the surnames of both parents separated by a hyphen or, if one or both parents have more than one surname, of one of the surnames of each parent separated by a hyphen, if all of the following apply: 1. Only one parent requests that the child’s name be changed, or both parents request that the child’s name be changed but each parent requests a different name change. 2. The court finds that such a name change is in the child’s best interest.

(4) LIABILITY FOR PAST SUPPORT. (a) Subject to par. (b), liability for past support of the child is limited to support for the period after the day on which the petition in the action under s. 767.80 is filed, unless a party shows, to the satisfaction of the court, all of the following: 1. That he or she was induced to delay commencing the action by any of the following: a. Duress or threats. b. Actions, promises or representations by the other party upon which the party relied. c. Actions taken by the other party to evade paternity proceedings. 2. That, after the inducement ceased to operate, he or she did not unreasonably delay in commencing the action.

(b) In no event may liability for past support of the child be imposed for any period before the birth of the child.

(6) OTHER APPLICABLE PROVISIONS. Sections 767.41, 767.43, 767.451, 767.481, 767.57, 767.58, 767.59, 767.71, 767.75, 767.76, 767.77, and 767.78, where applicable, apply to a judgment or order under this section.

(7) PREPARATION OF FINAL PAPERS. The court may order the attorney for the prevailing party to prepare findings of fact, conclusions of law and a judgment for the approval of the court.

End

Official Notes

Wisconsin prints certain labelled notes with the statute — effective-date notes, cross-references, and notes of the Judicial Council. They are reproduced verbatim below. The unlabelled digest of court decisions that the Legislative Reference Bureau prints after them is annotation rather than statute, and is not reproduced.

NOTE: 2005 Wis. Act 443 contains explanatory notes. Determining a father’s support obligation by applying percentage standards is inappropriate when the children live in several households. Weidner v. W.G.N., 131 Wis. 2d 301, 388 N.W.2d 615 (1986). Regardless of whether a 15 year old boy’s fathering of a child resulted from sexual assault as defined in criminal law, the trial court could find that intercourse and parenthood were voluntary for purposes of imposing child support. Whether n

Amendment History

Wisconsin prints each section’s legislative history as a single “History” line naming every act that created or amended it, and every renumbering. It is reproduced verbatim below.

History: 1979 c. 352; 1983 a. 27, 192, 447; 1985 a. 29; 1985 a. 315 s. 22; 1987 a. 27, 37, 355, 413; 1989 a. 212; 1991 a. 39; 1993 a. 481; 1995 a. 27 ss. 7115, 7116, 9126 (19); 1995 a. 100, 201, 279, 375, 404; 1997 a. 27, 35, 191; 1999 a. 9; 2001 a. 16; 2005 a. 304; 2005 a. 443 ss. 218, 261; Stats. 2005 s. 767.89; 2007 a. 20; 2017 a. 203, 334, 366; 2021 a. 127.

Plain-English Summary

The end of the paternity action, and the start of everything that follows from it.

Effect. A judgment or order determining the existence or nonexistence of paternity is determinative for all purposes. Not just for support — for inheritance, benefits, and every other question that turns on who a child's father is.

The report. Within 30 days of entry, the clerk or the county child support agency files a report with the state registrar giving the names, dates and birth places of the child and father, the social security numbers of mother, father and child, and the mother's maiden name, with the registrar's fee. If the fee cannot be collected, the department pays it and cannot bill the county.

What the judgment must contain. An adjudication of paternity; custody and placement orders; the custody information the placement section requires; support for a child under 18, or under 19 if pursuing a high school diploma or its equivalent; who claims the tax exemption; the father's obligation for pregnancy and birth expenses, capped at one-half of the total actual and reasonable expenses, with findings on whether his income is at or below the poverty line and whether periodic payments are due; guardian ad litem fees, genetic test costs and other costs; and attorney fees.

The child's name. On both parents' request the court shall change it to whatever they agree. Where only one asks, or they ask for different things, the court may hyphenate the parents' surnames if that is in the child's best interest.

Past support. Limited to the period after the petition was filed, unless a party shows they were induced to delay by duress, threats, the other party's promises or representations, or evasion of paternity proceedings — and that they did not unreasonably delay once that stopped. Never for any period before the birth.

From here the judgment is governed by the ordinary custody, placement, visitation, revision and enforcement sections of the chapter, as if it had come out of a divorce.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a Wisconsin paternity judgment decide?

It is determinative for all purposes, and must contain an adjudication of paternity, custody and placement orders, child support, the tax exemption, the father's share of pregnancy and birth expenses, guardian ad litem and test costs, and attorney fees.

How soon is the birth record updated?

The clerk or county child support agency files the report with the state registrar within 30 days after entry of the judgment or order.

How far back can support be ordered?

To the day the petition was filed, and no further, unless a party shows they were induced to delay by duress, threats, the other party's representations or evasion, and did not unreasonably delay afterwards. Never before the child's birth.

Can the child's surname be changed?

On both parents' request the court shall order the agreed name. Otherwise it may order a hyphenated combination of the parents' surnames if that is in the child's best interest.

Source & verification. The statutory text, official notes and history are reproduced verbatim from the Wisconsin Statutes, Chapter 767 (Wis. Stat. § 767.89), published by the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. Current through 2025 Wisconsin Act 247. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified September 8, 2026. · Official source

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