Maryland Court of Appeals Gives New Rights to Separated Gay Parents

Separated gay parents have been given a boost Maryland’s Court of Appeals. As reported by baltimoresun.com, the state’s highest court ruled that people can still be recognized as legal parents if they raised children but did not have any biological or adoptive relationship with the child.

Divorce lawyers in Baltimore, MD point out that the ruling is applicable to opposite-sex as well as same-sex couples. However, gay parents are likely to benefit more since the issue of parenthood has always been a complex one for them over the past few decades and no matter what it will continue to be.

Court rules on 2011 case

The ruling stems from the case of a transgender man, Michael Conover and his ex-wife Brittany Eckel. Conover publicly still had a woman’s identity in 2009 when the couple decided to have a child. Eckel was impregnated using a sperm donor while the baby’s birth certificate only listed her name.

Later, problems cropped up in 2011 when the couple decided to separate and Conover petitioned for visitation rights during their divorce. Golden divorce attorneys in Maryland explain that the judge at the time observed that Conover did not have any status as the child’s parent.

Conover is obviously pleased with the ruling and hoped to see his son very soon after four years. Since the case is still open and will be back in the Washington County court, his lawyers have advised him to refrain from any interviews. On the other hand, Eckel’s attorney was of the opinion that it was inappropriate for the court to take on the job of the General Assembly in a bid to please gay people. He claimed that they did not consider the consequences of the ruling.

For the most part, the recent ruling establishes a new class of parenthood for those who prove then can be a responsible parent. Conover’s legal representative termed the ruling as an incredible win for the LGBT community and said that it reaffirmed that relationships between parents and children are entitled to protection by law even if the parents are by not so by blood or adoption.

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Divorce lawyers in Baltimore, MD know that divorce laws continue to evolve. 

Judges weigh recent recognition of same-sex marriage by US Supreme Court

Divorce lawyers in Baltimore, MD say that the latest decision overturned a ruling in a similar case 8 years ago. In her opinion, Court of Appeals Judge Sally D. Adkins observed that the previous decision was wrong and much had changed over time. She noted that the state’s recognition of same-sex marriage demonstrated that gays and lesbians were brought into the fold of the family unit within society.

The decision gave same-sex couples the much needed legal protection to raise children without tying parental status to marital status. Judge Adkins also wrote that Maryland law had well established the value of strong parental figures to children and giving adults who raised children an avenue did not diminish the rights of biological parents.

Meanwhile, if issues like alimony and child custody are causing a roadblock in your divorce, make sure to reach out to a Maryland divorce lawyer to protect your protect your rights.