Catch up on some stories I haven’t posted about already! There are moves to make parentage more secure for children of LGBTQ parents in Ireland and Massachusetts; an ongoing custody case; two queer moms who could become federal judges, and more!
Politics and Law
- The Dáil, the lower house of the Irish legislature (Oireachtas), debated a bill that would ensure that children of same-sex parents have secure legal ties to both intended parents. It affirms that the best interests of the child are foremost, applies a presumption of parentage to same-sex as well as different-sex couples (whereby a child born in a marriage is the legal child of both spouses), allows those who used known donors to sign retrospective declarations of parentage (which had previously only been allowed if the genetic father was unknown), and closes gaps in previous laws, particularly for children born or conceived abroad, conceived outside of a clinical setting, or conceived via a known donor before May 4, 2020. It is similar in intent to the Massachusetts Parentage Act that is under consideration by the Joint Judiciary Committee of the Massachusetts Legislature. (See my coverage here.)
- Speaking of the Massachusetts Parentage Act, Yvonne Abraham’s excellent article in the Boston Globe, “We know there are many ways to make a family. Why doesn’t state law see it?” explains exactly why we need this legislation.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer reports on the case of Nicole Junior and Chanel Glover, a formerly married couple fighting over parental rights. They had started their family together via assisted insemination, with Glover carrying the child. Although they retained a lawyer in preparation for doing a co-parent (second-parent) adoption, they divorced before this took place. A year ago, as I reported, the Pennsylvania Superior Court ruled that Junior had no parental rights. The same court then heard the case “en banc” (with all the judges of the court) and reversed the ruling, affirming Junior’s parentage. Glover has now appealed to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
- If Judges Nicole Berner and Melissa DuBose are confirmed to the federal bench, reports The 19th, President Joe Biden would tie a record of appointing 11 openly LGBTQ lifetime judges. What it doesn’t mention is that both of these women are also moms—so add them to the “Queer Parents Doing Cool Things” file.
Family Profiles
- Colorado Governor Jared Polis (D) spoke with the Advocate about “being a dad, husband—and America’s first out gay governor.” (Fun fact: His kids named the four turkeys he pardoned last Thanksgiving.)