New York, NY – New York State Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal (D/WF, Manhattan) announced that her bill, A.5652-B, landmark legislation permitting unmarried partners, including same-sex couples, to adopt a child together had passed both the Assembly and the Senate and would soon reach the Governor’s desk.

“This is a terrific victory for children lucky enough to have two people committed to raising them with the full protection of the law,” said Assemblymember Rosenthal. “It is unfair and mean-spirited to deny children in these circumstances their parents’ life insurance payments, right to health insurance and other crucial benefits. Allowing both parents full legal guardianship will guarantee children the ability to have continued access to both parents and extended family in the event of separation and help them avoid the heartbreak and uncertainty that could emerge in the event of one parent’s death.”

Although this right was previously affirmed in the 4-3 New York State Court of Appeals’ ruling Matter of Jacob and Matter of Dana in a majority opinion authored by then Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye, the court did not specifically address instances in which neither adult is a biologically related to the child. Unmarried couples have continued to experience difficulties in attaining the rights afforded to them in this decision, and must file two different applications and go through two separate certification processes. This bill would codify the Court of Appeal’s decision and end existing legal ambiguities. Current statutory provisions in New York State law permit only an adult person or adult husband and wife to adopt a child.

A New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division reached a similar conclusion in Matter of Adoption of Carolyn B, upholding “both the letter and the spirit of the statute as it has developed: ‘encouraging the adoption of as many children as possible regardless of the sexual orientation or marital status of the individuals seeking to adopt them.’”

In her opinion on the Matter of Jacob and Matter of Dana, former Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye wrote “Because the two adoptions sought--one by an unmarried heterosexual couple, the other by the lesbian partner of the child's mother--are fully consistent with the adoption statute, we answer this question in the affirmative. To rule otherwise would mean that the thousands of New York children actually being raised in homes headed by two unmarried persons could have only one legal parent, not the two who want them.”

In the State Senate, the proposal was sponsored by Senator Tom Duane. Twenty seven other states offer varying degrees of this protection, although many of these court cases have adjudicated below the state-wide level. This achievement comes at the conclusion of Gay Pride Month. Said Assemblymember Rosenthal, “I look forward to assisting families that seek to take advantage of this new law.”

Under existing application of the law, parents face onerous legal burdens and unnecessary anxiety. The full protections offered by the bill include:

• Social security benefit in the event of a parent's death or disability;
• Life insurance benefits in the event of a parent's death;
• The right to sue for wrongful death of a parent;
• The rule to inherit under the rules of intestacy;
• Eligibility for health insurance coverage under both parents' health insurance policies;
• The right to have two parents participate in medical decisions in the event of an emergency;
• The right to receive economic support from two parents;
• The emotional security of knowing that in the event of death of parent, the other will have presumptive custody;
• The right to continue the relationships with both parents and extended families in the event of a separation; and
• The right to have both parents named on the birth certificate.

Assemblymember Rosenthal represents the Upper West Side of Manhattan and parts of Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen.