Second Parent Adoption | New Hampshire

Yes, but probably only so long as they are married. In a 1987 case involving a straight couple, the New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled that New Hampshire’s adoption statute, which permits joint adoption by a “husband and wife,” ( NH RSA 170-B:4, I) does not allow two unmarried adults to adopt together.68 Although the language of the statute is gendered, a married same-sex couple should be allowed to adopt.

A second-parent adoption is when one partner adopts the other partner’s biological child. Although New Hampshire law has no explicit prohibition against second-parent adoptions, the New Hampshire Supreme Court has yet to rule on the issue. While some second-parent adoptions have been granted by the lower courts, others have been denied. If you are an unmarried couple who has been denied the ability to petition for a second-parent adoption, please contact GLAD Answers.

However, there is some good news: New Hampshire law explicitly allows for step-parent adoption, whereby one spouse adopts the other’s biological child (NH RSA 170-B:4, IV(a)). Married same-sex couples can use this process to effectuate a second-parent adoption.

For more information about both adoption and second parent adoption see Perguntas e Respostas sobre Adoção.

Both joint adoptions and second parent adoptions ensure your child has two legal parents, which often provides greater comfort and security to everyone involved. Depending on your particular family situation, the law may not recognize both partners as legal parents without an adoption. In these cases, the non-legal parent needs special permission to make medical decisions for the child or attend school meetings, and is at risk of losing custody if the couple splits up.

A adoção permite que um pai/mãe não legal se torne pai/mãe legal, com o direito de tomar decisões pela criança sem autorização especial. Também permite que o pai/mãe adotivo/a assuma automaticamente a guarda da criança em caso de falecimento do parceiro/a. Da mesma forma, em caso de falecimento do pai/mãe adotivo/a, a criança terá o direito de herdar a herança, mesmo na ausência de testamento, e poderá receber benefícios de sobrevivência da previdência social.

Finally, if a couple separates, adoption ensures that both parents have the right to custody and visitation, and that any disputes will be decided based on what is in the best interests of the child rather than on who is the legal parent.

A joint adoption is when both partners adopt a child together at the same time. A second-parent adoption is when one partner adopts the other partner’s child. A single-parent adoption is when a single individual adopts a child. All three of these are legal in Connecticut.

Um pai biológico que mantém um relacionamento com seu filho é um pai legal. Um pai adotivo também é um pai legal.

Even without a biological or adoptive connection, certain individuals are presumed to be legal parents by law. For instance, a man is presumed to be a father if he is married to the child’s mother or marries her after the child’s birth and acknowledges paternity in writing (NH RSA 168-B:3, I(a)). Although the statute is gendered, it should apply equally to same-sex couples (see, NH RSA 23:3 (“gender-specific terms relating to the marital relationship or familiar relationships … shall be construed to be gender-neutral for all purposes throughout New Hampshire law)).

Similarly, parentage is presumed when a person “receives the child into [their] home and openly holds out the child as [their] child” (NH RSA 168-B:3, I(d)). In a groundbreaking 2014 case, In Re Guardianship of Madelyn B. (166 N.H. 453 (2014)), the New Hampshire Supreme Court established that this presumption applies equally to same-sex parents. The court also held that a lack of biological connection did not bar the application of the presumption, since the “presumptions are driven not by biolog[y]…but by the state’s interest in the welfare of the child and the integrity of the family” (Eu ia. at 462). GLAD and co-counsel Kysa Crusco represented the plaintiff in the case, a lesbian non-birth mother seeking to establish legal parentage of her daughter.

While this decision is an incredibly important victory for all LGBT families, having to go through a court to establish parenthood is painful and costly. Couples are strongly encouraged to obtain legal recognition of parent-child relationships outside of court. For more information, see GLAD’s publication, Protegendo Famílias: Padrões para Famílias LGBT.

A second parent adoption is the best way to ensure the ongoing parental rights of both partners. Even if New Hampshire law presumes you are a legal parent, another state may not respect that presumption if you or your partner moves. By contrast, adoption is a court judgment creating a parent-child relationship and is very likely to be respected by other states, even if these states are otherwise hostile to same-sex couples parenting.

Barra lateral Miller-Jenkins

Confiar na boa vontade do parceiro, ou mesmo no fato de que uma criança nasceu de um casamento ou união estável, não é a melhor maneira de garantir os direitos contínuos de ambos os pais caso o casal se separe posteriormente. Um exemplo disso é Miller-Jenkins contra Miller-JenkinsEste caso está em litígio desde 2004, envolveu duas Supremas Cortes estaduais (Vermont e Virgínia) e já foi levado diversas vezes à Suprema Corte dos EUA. Os processos estão em andamento.

Nesse caso, Janet e Lisa tiveram uma filha, Isabella, enquanto viviam em união estável. Janet não adotou. Após a separação do casal, Lisa mudou-se para a Virgínia e usou a ausência de uma adoção e as leis da Virgínia, hostis a relacionamentos entre pessoas do mesmo sexo, para impedir o contato de Janet com a filha. Finalmente, porém, os tribunais da Virgínia concordaram que os tribunais de Vermont tinham autoridade para tomar decisões sobre custódia e visitas.

Após muitas tentativas de convencer Lisa a conceder direitos de visita a Janet, em novembro de 2009, o Tribunal de Família de Vermont emitiu uma ordem concedendo a Janet a responsabilidade pelos cuidados diários de Isabella, ao mesmo tempo em que concedia a Lisa direitos de visita mais amplos. A transferência da custódia deveria ter ocorrido em 1º de janeiro de 2010. No entanto, Lisa não compareceu no horário combinado, e um mandado de prisão foi expedido. Lisa e Isabella ainda não foram encontradas.

GLAD and local counsel represented Janet in the Vermont proceedings. For more information about the case, go to https://www.gladlaw.org/work/cases/miller-jenkins-v-miller-jenkins.

Yes. In 2014, the New Hampshire General Court passed Senate Bill 353, An Act Relative to Surrogacy (NH RSA 168-B, available at http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2014/SB0353.html), which updated New Hampshire’s surrogacy law to reflect advances in assisted reproductive technologies. Previously New Hampshire law allowed surrogacy only when the intended mother’s eggs were used, and only when the intended parents were married. The new Act, which is one of the most comprehensive and forward-looking surrogacy laws in the country, allows all individuals to become parents via surrogacy regardless of marital status or sexual orientation.

The Act also simplified the legal process for intended parents, establishing standardized criteria for gestational carrier agreements and ensuring that all parties are legally protected. It sets minimum requirements for gestational carrier agreements and recognizes that these agreements are legally enforceable contracts. However, it is important to note that the Act allows a surrogate to keep the child if she executes a signed writing of her intention and delivers it to the intended parents at least 72 hours prior to the birth (see NH RSA 168-B:25, I-IV).

These are tricky cases, but a non-legal parent may be able show that they stand in loco parentis to their child, entitling them to a limited number of rights, including the ability to intervene in custody proceedings. To establish in loco parentis, an individual must show that they admitted the child into their family and treated the child as a family member, forming a “psychological parent-child relationship.”

Há uma série de medidas que podem ser tomadas, embora nenhuma ofereça a segurança de uma adoção por um segundo pai.

1. Acordo de coparentalidade: Um acordo de coparentalidade é um acordo que estabelece as expectativas dos pais sobre os papéis um do outro e seus planos em caso de separação, invalidez ou morte. Embora esses acordos nem sempre sejam plenamente aplicados pelos tribunais, que são obrigados a tomar decisões sobre custódia e visitas com base no melhor interesse da criança, eles são indicadores importantes do que o casal acreditava era do melhor interesse da criança e pode influenciar a decisão final do tribunal.
2. Co-tutela: A legal parent may choose to name the non-legal parent as a co-guardian. This process allows the non-legal parent to make the same kinds of decisions for the child that a legal parent makes, including medical decisions (see NH RSA 463:10 (allowing appointment of appropriate persons, including “co-guardians may be appointed when in the best interests of the minor”), 12 (rights of guardian)). The best interest of the child standard controls appointments of guardians (NH RSA 463:8), and a guardian must file annual reports on the minor’s welfare (NH RSA 463:12). This status is not permanent and any person, including the legal parent, may petition to have a guardian removed (NH RSA 463:14-16).
3. Testamentos: A legal parent may use their will to nominate a guardian to take custody of the child upon the parent’s death. These wishes are given strong preference by courts. However, if the child has another legal parent living, then that person will have priority over the nominated guardian.