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Same-sex custody battles may get even more complicated

On Behalf of | Sep 25, 2012 | Uncategorized

Many legal issues have arisen as same-sex couples have gained the right to marry in some states. Some cite health insurance coverage complications, others look at probate and estate law issues, but one of the most complicated matters for same-sex couples in Ohio and elsewhere is the custody agreement.

Many same-sex couples have children. And though those children may not have both parents as biological relatives, both members of the couple still act as parents for the child. Those two parents-one biological and the other not-may have an issue if they choose to get a divorce.

In some situations, a court may side with the biological mother, saying that the other parent has no eligibility for parental rights over the involved children. In other cases, the non-biological parent may have chosen to legally adopt the couple’s shared children and the adoption may not be recognized. But in some extremely contorted cases-one in particular-the second biological parent may get involved.

One case involved two women who had a child together. The young girl had two parents and then rapidly had none. One mother was sent to jail while the other was hospitalized-according to reports, she was stabbed by the other’s boyfriend. The child was taken into the custody of the state. That is when the girl’s biological father stepped in but, since the law recognized the girl’s two mothers as her only parents, he could do nothing.

That is why some legislators in California are hoping to pass a bill that will allow a child to have three parents instead of two. Remember, a homosexual couple needs a third party to have what it takes to create a baby. This may be an anonymous egg or sperm donor, but it can also be a close friend or relative. Couples that want the child to resemble both parents may ask a relative to donate her or his genes to the creation of the child.

Source: Christian Post, “One Consequence of Same-Sex Marriage,” Jim Daly, Sept. 14, 2012

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