Three female same-sex couples have sued the state of Arkansas over the state’s refusal to list two same-sex parents on their children’s birth certificates.
The lawsuit, filed in Pulaski County Circuit Court, resulted after the state would only list the biological parents on the birth certificates of the children in question. The three couples who filed the lawsuit (and other parents in their situation) were told they would need a court order to amend the birth certificates — to add the other parent.
The suit says the state’s actions “(deprives) these children of the dignity, legitimacy, security, support and protections provided to children of heterosexual couples, regardless of marital status.”
Kerry Krell, Spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Health, has said the state had elected to use court orders while the state evaluated what changes would be made to the law in the wake of Obergefell.
Cheryl Maples, the attorney for the three couples, has said she hopes the case will come before a judge. She says that prior to this case, she had seen more couples in the same situation. Said Maples: “Some [couples] have gone ahead and gone through adoption procedures because of the problems they had. They shouldn’t have to…They should be treated like heterosexual couples.”
[Via SF Gate]
