The right to marriage equality is enshrined across the country, but how that marriage impacts parental rights is decidedly not universal. A child born into a legal marriage, whether the parents are of the same or different genders, should result in a birth certificate with both spouses listed. That's called the "marital presumption" and, while it's quite a universal concept, unfortunately, that presumption can be rebutted in some jurisdictions. That's one reason that the consensus among LGBTQ legal authorities is that it's strongly suggested to secure parental rights by not relying solely on a birth certificate, which is an administrative document, but instead buttoning up parental rights with a court order. A court order, whether an adoption or a parentage judgment will be granted, in the language of our Constitution, "full faith and credit" in any jurisdiction in which it's presented. It's practically impossible to argue with a court order saying two people are legal parents, whereas there have been cases where being listed on the birth certificate was deemed insufficient to prove parental rights.
The court process we typically undertake in Florida is colloquially known as a confirmatory adoption. If you are an LGBTQ parent, it is now more important than ever to obtain confirmatory adoptions, even if you are married. Being listed as a parent on your child's birth certificate should be sufficient but may not be enough to guarantee your parental rights in every jurisdiction, especially in the event of a breakup or death down the road.
The good news is that it's a relatively simple and affordable process. Elizabeth has been a pioneer in LGBTQ family formation issues, working on several cases which helped overturn Florida's bigoted 1977 law banning LGBTQ people from adopting. Now that it's legal to do so, all families should be sure they have the protections they need in place.
To learn more about why a confirmatory adoption is suggested, please check out:
