Parental Rights, Same Sex Marriage

To say same sex marriage in Texas has been especially contentious is an understatement. The latest Supreme Court ruling, however, cements the future for same sex couples wishing to marry. That doesn’t mean all of the questions have been answered when it comes to adoptions in Texas, however. There are many married same sex couples who have children, either through adoption or artificial insemination and similar methods, but have only one spouse/parent listed on the birth certificate. It’s true, too, that before the Supreme Court ruling, there were a number of obstacles that made it virtually impossible for a same sex couple to list both parents on the child s birth certificate. Same sex marriage opportunities will certainly eliminate many of those barriers; however, there are still challenges on the horizon, not to mention potential future litigation. Texas birth certificates still allow only one mother and one father to be listed. If the child is biologically one partner’s, th
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Great—and Long Overdue News—for One Family

A Missouri father scored a great victory a few weeks ago when a judge refused to terminate his parental rights to his young daughter. Joshua Burns broke down in tears as the judge read her ruling, The court does find by a preponderance of evidence that it is not child s best interests to terminate the respondent father s parental rights. His daughter, Naomi, was 11 weeks old when doctors found bleeding between her brain and her skull. Her father said his young daughter was resting across his knees when he reached forward to answer a ringing phone. The baby began to slip and he instinctively caught her by her face. Two days later, the baby became lethargic and her parents took her to the doctor. It was at that time a doctor said that the baby had been abused. The parents fought the ruling and Naomi’s father took—and passed—two lie detector tests. Still, he was arrested and charged with child abuse. The courts tried to terminate not only his parental rights, but those of his wife
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Understanding Child Custody

Anyone seeking custody should familiarize themselves with a bit of related legal terminology first. However, the same terms can have different meanings in different states, which can complicate matters if you’re talking to a cousin in Michigan whose definition of a term like physical custody is substantially different from the one you re used to in Texas. As always, you should seek sound legal guidance, whether you’re in Texas or any other state, as you go about the business of protecting your parental rights. Physical Custody  Physical child custody, simply stated, means the parent has the right to have a child live with him or her. In many cases, especially in recent years, joint physical custody has been awarded, which allows for both parents to enjoy significant amounts of unbroken time with their children. Naturally, this works best when both parents reside in the same area. Furthermore, countless studies show that, provided there are no harmful issues affecting the aran
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