AIKEN --- The attorney for James Brown's disputed fourth wife said Friday that a secret DNA test has proven her 6-year-old son is the music legend's child.

Robert Rosen, who is Tomi Rae Hynie Brown's Charleston, S.C.-based attorney, says a DNA test conducted in April shows James II is the singer's son.

He said the test was performed before Judge Jack Early's April 25 order that one be done to settle questions about the paternity of the child, who was born after the singer's 2000 will was drafted.

Mr. Brown's longtime advisers have questioned the boy's paternity, saying Mr. Brown didn't believe he fathered the child, whom he called "Little Man." Court-appointed attorneys overseeing the estate have also argued a DNA test should be conducted.

Also, a friend of Mr. Brown recently revealed to GQ magazine that it was common knowledge among many of Mr. Brown's friends that he had undergone a vasectomy in the 1980s.

Mr. Rosen said the attorney for James II's court-appointed guardian ad litem, Peter Shahid, had the test done and has shared the results with attorneys involved in the case.

"I've seen the test," Mr. Rosen said. "We cooperated because we had to give them a sample."

Last year, Judge Early allowed parties involved in litigation over the singer's estate to obtain a sample of Mr. Brown's DNA. Mr. Rosen said it was that sample Mrs. Brown turned over for testing.

A message left for Mr. Shahid on Friday evening was not returned.

Mr. Rosen said he doesn't know the status of the DNA test ordered by the court. They agreed to provide a DNA sample from James II, he said, but the estate representatives are in charge of having the test done.

"All they need is a specimen from him," he said.