Committee clears technical Boyd-Graves paternity fixes

Delegate Hope presented a Boyd-Graves conference bill to clarify that the Title 20 procedures for establishing paternity apply only to proceedings under Title 20 and to improve cross-references to avoid unintended application of one section’s procedures to another title. The measure was described as modest and technical, not altering the substance of how paternity is established in other titles.

Steven Price, a lawyer who chaired the Boyd-Graves committee, and representatives of family-law groups answered technical questions about administrative procedures and safeguards; the Virginia Family Law Coalition said the bill did not change their practice and supported the amendment. The subcommittee adopted the amendment and reported the bill 9–0.