Gay, Lesbian, Bi-Sexual, and Transgender, or GLBT, rights have at the forefront of the American social and legal conscious for some time now. Just recently, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) handed down a landmark ruling that declared the right to marry to be a “fundamental right.” As such, individual states can no longer ban same-sex couples from marrying in the state, nor can they refuse to recognize legal marriages performed elsewhere. If you part of a same-sex couple, one important question you may have is “What are my rights with respect to my same-sex partner’s children?”

The answer to that question was much more complicated prior to the recent SCOTUS ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges which effectively legalized same-sex marriage across the U.S. A same-sex couple who were forbidden to legally marry had to turn to adoption in order to ensure that both parents had legal rights to the couple’s child. In many states, including Florida, even that provided challenging because of a ban on gay or lesbians adopting. Even prior to Obergefell, however, things were starting to change in the State of Florida for same-sex couples. The adoption prohibition was found to be unconstitutional and several of the state’s appellate judges were ruling in favor of same-sex couples on marriage issues. The ruling in Obergefell, therefore, solidified where the law appeared to be going in Florida already.

Now that same-sex couples have the right to adopt and marry in Florida, obtaining legal rights to a partner’s child is much simpler. The exact route you take, however, will depend on your specific circumstances. If you are married, for example, you and your spouse can adopt a child and both of you will be granted parental rights when the adoption is finalized. If you are married and a child is born during the marriage you will also both automatically have rights to the child. If your spouse already had a child when you got married, and you now wish to obtain legal parental rights to the child, you will need to go through a step-parent adoption. To do that, you will need to obtain consent for the child’s other parent or terminate the rights of the other parent first.

Because same-sex couples often use alternatives routes to create a child, such as donor sperm, a gestational carrier, or surrogacy, it is always best to consult an experienced attorney before moving forward to ensure that both parents will have parental right to the child when the baby is born.

If you have additional questions or concerns about parental rights for same-sex couples in Florida, contact the experienced Florida attorneys at Celler Legal, P.A. by calling 954-716-8601 to schedule your appointment.