Ohio gay couples now able to adopt jointly. “It’s been kind of nice to sit up here and see the world change.”

The Supreme Court decision regarding marriage has provided access to all the same court actions available to opposite-sex spouses – and that includes recognition as the legal parents of children moms and dads have been raising with their wives and husbands.

Because same-sex couples had not been able to marry in Ohio or to have their out-of-state unions recognized, they couldn’t jointly adopt. They couldn’t adopt each other’s kids through a second-parent, or stepparent action either.

Paternity filings are now an option to couples who were married before adopting or having children. When approved, the determination allows the other parent to be listed on the child’s birth certificate, just as an adoption does.

Robert Morris, the Probate Court’s administrative magistrate believes the transition has been smooth, and employees seem pleased to be able to serve couples and families long denied access to court processes.

“It’s been kind of nice,” Morris said, “to sit up here and see the world change.”

via The Columbus Dispatch
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