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The University of New Hampshire Law Review

Abstract

[Excerpt] “The family and parental relationship appears secure as long as the members of the family stay within the borders of the states that recognize their relationship. What happens, though, when the family ventures beyond the borders of Vermont, Massachusetts, California, and Connecticut, has yet to be determined. Legislation in almost every other state has addressed whether each state will recognize the couples’ relationship,27 but no state has determined how it will treat the legal relationship between the children of these couples and their parents.28 This article will focus on the fragile legal relationship between same-sex parents and their children and will suggest legislative adjustments that can address this relationship without forcing states to recognize the underlying relationship with the parents. […]

Part II will explain the most common methods of addressing parentage issues in traditional family relationships. Part III will review the various methods courts have used to address parentage determinations in same-sex relationships in states where same-sex relationships are not sanctioned. Part IV will explain how courts have addressed parentage determinations in the states that recognize some form of same-sex relationship. Part V will identify potential and actual issues that arise when same-sex couples travel from states that recognize their relationship to those that do not. Finally, Part VI will suggest legislative action that can eliminate the need for varying tests and standards depending on the sexes of the parents.”

Repository Citation

Linda S. Anderson, Protecting Parent-Child Relationships: Determining Parental Rights of Same-Sex Parents Consistently Despite Varying Recognition of their Relationship, 5 Pierce L. Rev. 1 (2006), available at http://scholars.unh.edu/unh_lr/vol5/iss1/3

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