§ 581-206 Jurisdiction, and exclusive continuing jurisdiction

This rule explains which New York courts can handle cases about establishing legal parentage, like determining who a child's legal parent is. You can start these cases in state supreme court, family court, or surrogate's court. Once a court begins handling one of these cases, that same court keeps control over the case.

The rule also sets a time limit on this control. The court stays in charge of the parentage case until the child turns 180 days old, which is about six months. After that point, a different set of rules found in the Domestic Relations Law takes over to decide which court has authority.

This matters because it prevents confusion about which court handles a parentage case. If you file a case in one court, that court will see it through, at least for the first six months of the child's life. After that, the rules shift and the standard custody and family law jurisdiction rules apply instead.