How to Confirm Legal Parenthood of a Non-Birthing Parent
Every day, children are born to married people and unmarried people, to heterosexual couples and same-sex couples, to people who are not (or no longer) in a relationship, and to biological parents who are married to a non-biological parent. Much of American family law treats married, heterosexual couples as the norm.
When a family structure doesn’t fit into that historical framework, the non-birthing parent has to navigate a specific legal process to be named on the child’s birth certificate and have rights as the child’s lawful parent. Establishing parentage can benefit a child by helping to ensure that both parents support the child financially.
Care teams can educate families about parentage processes to support them in making informed decisions about their rights, with help from this tool, available in English and Spanish.
