Any suspicions raised against her parent's marriage could not strip Gaines of any presumption of legitimacy, according to Wayne.

The presumption of legitimacy is a common law rule of evidence that states that a child born within the subsistence of a marriage is deemed to be the child of the husband.

But the courts tend to give foreign policy searches, like wiretaps, a high presumption of legitimacy, and the chemical industry views such searches as similar to the health and safety inspections to which they are already subject.

While an unreported cash payment looks highly suspicious to jurors, he said, a campaign donation has a presumption of legitimacy that must be overcome with substantial evidence of motive and intent, evidence that is often lacking.

The presumption of legitimacy or presumption of paternity, which presumes that a husband is the biological father of a child born to his wife during the marriage, or within nine months after the marriage is ended by death, legal separation, or divorce.

His wife's sons might technically have claimed them since they were all born while she remained married to him, and there is a presumption of legitimacy in marriage, but no-one ever contended that they were in fact legitimate and no such claim was ever made.

Obviously, that aid should be given - and the administration should also be willing to regard the winner who emerges from the voting with the same tolerance and presumption of legitimacy that it is preparing to give to the victors in the deeply imperfect balloting that will be going on in Iraq in January.