October 11, 2011
Court Won't Hear Gay Dads' Birth Certificate Case
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a gay couple who want both of their names to appear on the Louisiana birth certificate of the child they adopted.
The court said Tuesday it won't review a federal appeals court ruling against the adoptive parents. The appeals court ruled that the Louisiana registrar's insistence that only one father's name can go on the certificate does not violate the child's right to equal protection under the law or deny legal recognition of the adoption by both men. The adoption occurred in New York, which allows same-sex couples to adopt.
Louisiana says its birth certificate policy reflects state law prohibiting adoption by unmarried couples, whether heterosexual or gay.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
