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Judge Rules in Favor of Identifying Same-sex Partners on Children's Birth Certificates

  • Veronica Neffinger

    Veronica Neffinger wrote her first poem at age seven and went on to study English in college, focusing on 18th century literature. When she is not listening to baseball games, enjoying the…

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  • Updated Nov 25, 2015

The State of Arkansas must include the names of both same-sex marriage partners on the birth certificates of their children, according to a new ruling.

Charisma News reports that three lesbian couples challenged the Arkansas Health Department’s Vital Statistics Bureau which refused to identify them as the parents of their adoptive or biological children.

Although the homosexual community views the ruling as a victory, the victory only applies to the three lesbian couples who filed the case.

Circuit Judge Tim Fox of Little Rock said he would consider including all same-sex married couples in his ruling at a later date.

“He made it pretty clear where he’s going,” said Cheryl Maples, the lesbian couples’ attorney.

“It’s another step forward for gay couples,” Maples continues, “and I’m sure the next step is right around the corner.” 

The state of Arkansas claims that they refused to allow the names of the homosexual couples on the children's birth certificates based on technical grounds, and that the issue was not one of same-sex marriage, but concerned long-established regulations which dictated how biological and adoptive parents were to be identified on official documents. 

The state holds that this policy can only be changed by the Arkansas Health Board or by the legislature. 

Publication date: November 25, 2015