Lineage

Lineage is considered one of the noblest family ties, upon which many religious and legal rulings are based, such as inheritance, alimony, and custody. Therefore, the legislator has carefully regulated the provisions of lineage to ensure family stability and protect the rights of both children and parents.

First: Methods of Establishing Lineage:

Lineage is attributed to the father only if the child is born within a valid marriage contract or through acknowledgment. For the mother, childbirth alone is sufficient to establish lineage.

Second: Lineage Under a Marriage Contract:

The child’s lineage is established to the father if the child is born during the validity of the marriage contract, or after its end within the maximum pregnancy period – which is ten months – unless it is proven that marital contact was impossible. The court may also rule otherwise based on an accredited medical report.

Third: Lineage Through Acknowledgment:

Conditions for establishing lineage through acknowledgment of paternity:

- The person making the acknowledgment must be an adult, sane, and acting of free will.

- The child must be of unknown parentage.

- The acknowledged person must accept the acknowledgment if they are of age and sane.

- The age difference must be plausible for the claim to be valid.

- If the acknowledgment is by the father, it must be proven that the birth occurred within a valid or void marriage contract.

- Lineage must be supported by DNA testing.

Fourth: DNA Testing:

The legislator authorized the court – in exceptional cases or in disputes – to order DNA testing to establish lineage, as stipulated in Article 70, provided that:

- The child is of unknown parentage.

- The age difference makes the claimed lineage plausible.

Fifth: Woman’s Acknowledgment of Lineage:

The child’s lineage to the current or former husband is not established solely by the woman’s acknowledgment unless the husband also acknowledges, in accordance with the conditions of acknowledgment of paternity, or if evidence proves the birth occurred within a valid or void marriage.

Sixth: Irrevocability of Lineage Once Established:

We emphasize here the binding nature of lineage as established by official legal texts and that it cannot be contested later.

Seventh: Disavowal of Lineage and Li’an (Mutual Cursing):

The law permits a man to deny paternity through li’an under strict conditions:

- The claim must be filed within 15 days from the date he learns of the birth.

- The man must not have previously made an explicit or implicit acknowledgment of paternity.

If a li’an claim is filed, the court will conduct DNA testing if the woman consents. If she refuses, the li’an will proceed without the test.

Eighth: Effects of Li’an:

- If li’an is conducted in accordance with legal procedures and considering the DNA test result – if done – the lineage is legally and religiously severed from the man.

- Possibility of revoking the disavowal of lineage:

If the man disavows the child through li’an but later retracts and admits he was mistaken, the child’s lineage is re-established.

After such a retraction, the man is no longer allowed to deny the lineage again in the future.

• Conclusion:

The Saudi Personal Status Law’s regulation of lineage reflects the legislator’s intent to balance the preservation of bloodlines and the protection of family rights, while also allowing modern scientific means – such as DNA testing – to confirm or deny lineage within a precise legal and religious framework that serves both public and private interests.