Post-Election Stress and Adoption
Yesterday morning, following President-Elect Trump’s win, I met with a young married couple about a step-parent adoption. They were two women, and the meeting opened with tears. It was heartbreaking. Adoption consultations are usually some of our most joyous — a happy couple, either planning for or expecting a child. Yesterday, though, was the morning after […]
U.S. Supreme Court Decision Underscores that Second Parent Adoption Remains Critical for Same Sex Parents
“You still have to adopt your children.” I have said this more times than I can count since the United States Supreme Court decisions on same sex marriage equality United States v. Windsor and Obergefell v. Hodges. Why? Many same-sex couples who have a child who is biologically related to one parent and not the other […]
Why, After the Supreme Court Marriage Ruling, Same Sex Spouses Should Still Adopt Their Non-Biological Children
It has been less than one week since the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision holding that the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution requires states to license marriages between two people of the same sex and to recognize lawful out-of-state marriages between two people of the same sex. Love won. Very understandably, we have already received multiple questions regarding […]
What’s the Difference Between Stepparent Adoptions and Second Parent Adoptions in Connecticut?
In Connecticut, the term “second parent adoption,” also known as a co-parent adoption, refers to a legal process in which a child who is the biological child of one member of a couple is adopted either through a joint petition by both members of the couple (even though one of them is already the child’s birth or adoptive […]
Why It is Especially Important that Connecticut Unmarried Same Sex Partners Adopt Their Children
One of the most common misconceptions that we hear when we are discussing parental rights with new or prospective clients is their belief that they are the legal parent of a child by virtue of appearing on the birth certificate. As the National Center for Lesbian Rights explains: It is extremely important for non-biological parents […]
But We Are Both on the Birth Certificate! Why Do We Need to Adopt?
A very common question that same sex married clients with children ask us is: “But we are legally married in Connecticut, and we are both on the birth certificate. Should we also adopt our child?” Yes. In Connecticut, a child born to two married persons is presumed to be the legal child of both parents […]
Connecticut Stepparent Adoptions: Is a Home Study Required?
“Second parent adoption” is the term used to describe adoptions in which the biological parent of one child agrees to allow another person responsible for the child’s care to legally adopt the child. This person may be a same sex spouse.
If you are interested, I have written more extensively previously about what second parent adoptions are
Why Legally Married Same Sex Couples Should Adopt Their Children
This week we got one of our favorite calls — a couple looking for assistance with their child’s adoption.
Prior to marriage equality in Connecticut, second parent adoption was critical for same sex couples because it provided a route to legal recognition of parenthood for them, even though they were unable to marry. Now that same sex couples are able to marry
California Light: The Connecticut Cooperative Post-Adoption Agreement
Can a child have three parents? In California she sure can. This week the New York Times published an article about a California bill just signed by Gov. Jerry Brown. The new law allows the courts to recognize situations when a child has three or more legal parents. This has implications for same sex couples, because of […]
