The offspring of a legitimate bed knows not his mother more certainly than his father.

Explanation

In lawful marriage, both parents stand on equal footing as to the child — the father's identity is as certain as the mother's, because the marriage itself establishes paternity.

Where this applies

• A husband disputes paternity of a child born during the marriage, but the court holds that within lawful wedlock the father's identity is as certain as the mother's.
• An inheritance dispute turns on whether a child born in wedlock can be challenged as not the husband's — the law presumes the father is known as certainly as the mother.
• A man married to the child's mother at the time of birth tries to deny paternity, but the common-law presumption treats both parents as equally certain in a legitimate marriage.

See also

• 4.2.1 The father is he whom the marriage indicates.
• 4.2.10 Children born under a legitimate marriage follow the condition of the father.