A number of people have expressed concern about the future of marriage equality following Trump’s election. According to the civil rights group, NCLR, “there is no realistic possibility that anyone’s marriage will be invalidated.” The organization further explained: “For individuals who are not currently married but who may wish to marry in the future, it is …
Marriage Equality in the Aftermath of the Trump Election Read More »
Since the Supreme Court ruling on marriage in June, I have been working with several other attorneys on getting the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to update their policies to make them consistent with those of opposite-sex couples with regard to vital records, including birth certificates and death certificates. In August, DSHS released new regulations allowing …
DSHS Announces Equal Policies for Vital Records, Birth Certificates Read More »
While the recent Supreme Court decision extending marriage equality nationwide marks a monumental step forward for equality, it by no means resolves all legal issues related to same-sex families. In fact, because same-sex marriage is relatively new to the country and brand new to Texas, there are still many legal issues that remain to be resolved.
Adoption by same-sex couples (also called second parent adoption) is an option in Texas; however, because the state does not allow same-sex couples to legally marry and there is no law explicitly authorizing same-sex couples to adopt in Texas, it should be approached carefully. A second-parent adoption occurs when a second person in an unmarried couple adopts …
