The One Year Statute of Limitations for Initiating Paternity Suits in Texas is Not Unconstitutional

Examines the Texas Court of Civil Appeals for Dallas’s decision in Texas Department of Human Resources v. Chapman. In Chapman, the court held that a Texas statute that established a one-year statute of limitations on initiating paternity suits was constitutional and did not violate the illegitimate child’s equal protection and due process rights. The court relied on the argument that statute bore a rational relation to a legitimate state interest because it protected fathers from stale suits, the evidence against which may not be readily available at a later date. The author believes that a stricter standard should have been applied in light of contemporary United States Supreme Court Decisions