US: New Jersey court ruling recognises the significance of LGBT parental rights
Last week a New Jersey appellate court ruling recognised that a parent with no biological or legal ties to a child may still be entitled to custodial rights as a ‘Psychological Parent’.
This includes the right of any step-parent, whether in a same-sex marriage or not, to seek visitation or custody after having raised a step-child from a young age.
The New Jersey case involved a lesbian couple who jointly raised the 18-month-old biological child of one of the woman.
After separating, the woman with no legal ties to the child filed for custody and visitation rights but lost in trial court.
An appeals court however, ruled that she is in fact entitled to custodial rights and that it would be in the best interest of the child for her to remain in his life.
