Two lawyers who helped deflate rumors of John Edwards' affair had ties to him.

New York attorney Robert Gordon represented Rielle Hunter, while Washington lawyer Pamela Marple worked for Andrew Young, the purported father of Hunter's child.

Statements issued by the two attorneys independently in late 2007 seemed to put to rest the story of an affair then printed in the National Enquirer.

Both lawyers have worked with Fred Baron, a wealthy Dallas lawyer and former finance chairman for the Edwards campaign. Gordon worked with Baron on class-action personal injury cases and Marple helped defend a lawsuit brought against both men by an asbestos manufacturer.

Baron has given conflicting reports of what he knew about how the two lawyers came to represent Hunter and Young. (NYT) 

The birth certificate of a child who a tabloid newspaper claims is linked to former Sen. John Edwards doesn't identify a father.

The certificate, obtained by The Charlotte Observer today, shows Frances Quinn Hunter was born Feb. 27, more than two months after an Edwards aide claimed to be the father, Lisa Zagaroli and Lorenzo Perez report.

Andrew Young, a former Edwards campaign finance director, claimed paternity in a statement from his lawyer posted at the political blog mydd.com.

The girl was born at Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, Calif., to Rielle Jaya James Druck, also known as Rielle Hunter. Hunter, 44, was a videographer on Edwards' presidential campaign last year.

Asked Thursday why no father was listed on the birth certificate, Hunter's attorney, Robert Gordon of New York, said, "A lot of women do that." Reminded that he and Hunter had publicly revealed the father's identity two months earlier to the National Enquirer, Gordon said, "That's a personal matter between them."

Gordon declined to comment further.

With unmarried couples, California state law requires both parents to sign a "Declaration of Paternity" form prior to the father's name being put on the birth certificate. If the father is not present, his name may be added to the birth certificate at a later date after proper forms are obtained from the Department of Vital Records.