2010-12-04

New Mexico court rules that a same-sex partner can't seek custody of child because they weren't married.

A same-sex partner of an adoptive mother can't seek child custody but may request visitation, the New Mexico Court of Appeals has ruled in a precedent-setting case.

State laws provide no legal right for a Santa Fe-area woman to bring a lawsuit asking for custody of a child who was adopted by her partner during their 15-year relationship, the court concluded in a 2-1 ruling issued Wednesday.

Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said Thursday the ruling was a "step backward" on child custody because New Mexico previously had been a leader in "protecting children's relationships with functional parents, with people who are true parents in every sense of the word but don't have a biological or adoptive relationship with the child."


Daily Times

No comments:

Post a Comment