(750 ILCS 46/309)

Sec. 309. Procedure for challenge.

(a) A voluntary acknowledgment and any related denial may be challenged only on the basis of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact by filing a verified petition under this Section within 2 years after the effective date of the voluntary acknowledgment or denial, as provided in Section 304 of this Act. Time during which the person challenging the voluntary acknowledgment or denial is under legal disability or duress or the ground for relief is fraudulently concealed shall be excluded in computing the period of 2 years.

(b) The verified complaint, which shall be designated a petition, shall be filed in the county where a proceeding relating to the child was brought, such as a support proceeding or, if none exists, in the county where the child resides. Every signatory to the voluntary acknowledgment and any related denial must be made a party to a proceeding to challenge the voluntary acknowledgment or denial. The party challenging the voluntary acknowledgment or denial shall have the burden of proof. The burden of proof to challenge a voluntary acknowledgment is clear and convincing evidence.

(c) For the purpose of a challenge to a voluntary acknowledgment or denial, a signatory submits to personal jurisdiction of this State by signing the voluntary acknowledgment and any related denial, effective upon the filing of the voluntary acknowledgment and any related denial with the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, as provided in Section 12 of the Vital Records Act.

(d) Except for good cause shown, during the pendency of a proceeding to challenge a voluntary acknowledgment or denial, the court may not suspend the legal responsibilities of a signatory arising from the voluntary acknowledgment, including the duty to pay child support.

(e) At the conclusion of a proceeding to challenge a voluntary acknowledgment or denial, the court shall order the Department of Public Health to amend the birth record of the child, if appropriate. A copy of an order entered at the conclusion of a proceeding to challenge shall be provided to the Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

(Source: P.A. 99-85, eff. 1-1-16; 99-769, eff. 1-1-17.)