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New York’s Definition of Family Has Grown, Once Again

May 30, 2018 By Joy Rosenthal

New York’s Definition of Family Has Grown, Once Again by Joy Rosenthal

Some 18 months ago, I wrote about an important decision, Brooke S.B.1, by the New York Court of Appeals, which is the highest court in New York. (You can see that blog post here.) In Brooke, the Court determined that the non-biological mother in a same sex couple had standing to request custody or visitation of the child she helped to raise. The Brooke court found that it was in the child’s best interest to continue that relationship, and found … read more »

Filed Under: Children, Divorce, Families, LGBT Tagged With: custody, Nontraditional Family, Parental Rights

Finally, A Better Definition of Family

September 21, 2016 By Joy Rosenthal

New York’s highest court, the New York State Court of Appeals, made a long overdue and unquestionably important decision last month—that a de facto parent who is not a biological or adoptive parent has standing to petition for custody and visitation. This comes up in the context of same-sex relationships where one parent is related to the child biologically, where the parents have raised the children together but are not married.  The issue is whether, if they break up, the … read more »

Filed Under: Caregiving, Children, Divorce, Families, LGBT Tagged With: children, compassion, conflict, court, custody, divorce, family, gay, lesbian, LGBT, marriage

How History is Written

April 8, 2016 By Joy Rosenthal

I just read a beautiful tribute to the late Hon. Judith Kaye (1938-2016), who was the much respected and beloved Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals of the State of New York.  The tribute was written by Roberta Kaplan, Esq., who represented Edith Windsor in US vs Windsor, the landmark Supreme Court case that, overnight, extended equal rights of gay and lesbian Americans in unprecedented ways.  Ms. Kaplan recently remembered Judge Kaye at a dinner for Le-Gal, the LGBT … read more »

Filed Under: Adoption, Children, Families, LGBT Tagged With: family, gay, law, lesbian, LGBT

Same Sex Married Couples Still Need Second Parent Adoptions

June 2, 2015 By Joy Rosenthal

I have written about this before, and it is still true – same sex couples still need second parent adoptions even though they are legally married. New York’s Appellate Division Second Department made this clear their May 2015 decision, Matter of Paczkowski. The case is about a lesbian couple who was married and had a child together during the marriage.  The non-biological mom had not adopted their child. The couple later broke up, and she filed for joint custody, arguing … read more »

Filed Under: Adoption, Children, Families, LGBT, Marriage Tagged With: Adoption, children, family, gay, law, lesbian, LGBT

Busy week!

November 21, 2014 By Joy Rosenthal

It’s been a busy week – I was on a panel at CUNY School of Law about Contemplative Lawyering and alternatives to litigating on Monday. On Wednesday I was a panel at Cardozo Law School about mediating with non-traditional families. And today I published an article on FamilyAffaires.com about why second parent adoptions are still needed even when the same-sex parents are married.  They say that if  you love what you do, it never feels like work.  So true. I’m … read more »

Filed Under: Adoption, Families, LGBT Tagged With: Adoption, collaborative process, lesbian, LGBT

Second Parent Adoptions are Still Necessary!

June 17, 2014 By Joy Rosenthal

The NY Times’ Motherlode blog ran an article today about 2nd parent adoptions, and Judge Lopez Torres’ recent decision to deny a petition for such when the adoptive parents were married. Here is my comment (which they also published): I am an attorney who does second parent adoptions. I have completed and filed several such adoptions in New York State since Judge Lopez Torres’ decision was published – parallel courts recognize them as still being necessary. While Judge Lopez Torres’ … read more »

Filed Under: Adoption, Caregiving, Families, General, LGBT Tagged With: Adoption, children, family, gay, lesbian, LGBT

1 Step forward, 2 Steps back??

January 28, 2014 By Joy Rosenthal

The Kings County (Brooklyn) Surrogate’s Court issued a strange decision today – it denied a second parent adoption where the lesbian couple was married and the non-bio mom’s name is on the birth certificate, saying adoption is “neither necessary nor available.” It seems to me that this denies the reality that same sex marriage is still banned in most states and in many countries, and refuses to protect the legal relationship between the child and the non-bio mother. Is this … read more »

Filed Under: Adoption, Families, LGBT

Can a child have 3 parents?

October 13, 2013 By Joy Rosenthal

We all know that a child can only have 2 biological parents – a man and a woman.  But we also know that biology is only a small part of the story.   Every child is connected to more adults – as they say, “it takes a village to raise a child.”   Many children are actually being raised by more than 2 parents — step parents, grandparents, friends and partners can play an important role in the financial and emotional … read more »

Filed Under: Caregiving, Child Support, Children, Families, General, LGBT Tagged With: children, custody, divorce, family, finances, inclusivity, lesbian, LGBT, marriage, parents

DOMA and the States

July 10, 2013 By Joy Rosenthal

There is no doubt that the Supreme Court’s recent decision regarding the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was historic, and will forever change the lives for millions of same-sex couples and their families. There are over 1,100 federal benefits now available to married same sex couples that were previously only available to married heterosexual couples. But DOMA is not entirely deceased. There were 2 parts to DOMA – the part that remains intact is the part that says that states … read more »

Filed Under: Children, Estate Planning, Families, LGBT, Marriage, Travel Tagged With: Adoption, law, lesbian, LGBT, marriage, planning, wills

The Dreaded Pre-nup

February 18, 2013 By Joy Rosenthal

Lately, I have had a few clients who have come to me asking for a prenuptial agreement because their parents insisted that they have one. Prenups used to be thought of only for the rich and famous.  But they are becoming much more common, and are losing some of their stigma.  When should you consider having a pre-nup?  Here are some common examples when a pre-nup can be helpful.  If: You are part of a family business, and you want … read more »

Filed Under: Collaborative Process, Divorce, LGBT, Marriage, Mediation, Negotiation, Prenuptial Tagged With: children, collaborative process, common ground, compassion, conflict, family, gay, lesbian, LGBT, marriage

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Rosenthal Law & Mediation
212.532.4704

Joy S. Rosenthal, Esq.
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Brooklyn, NY 11215

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