DE Lesbian Wins Joint Custody Battle

March 8, 2006

DOVER—The Delaware Supreme Court today allowed a lesbian to retain joint custody of three children she helped raise with her former partner, the triplets' biological mother.

A three-judge panel of the state high court dismissed the appeal by Erica Smith that sought to block access to the children by her former partner, Sheila Smith.

A Delaware Family Court judge had ruled that Sheila Smith was a de facto parent and therefore entitled to joint custody.

Both women were assigned pseudonyms by the court, as is common in state Family Court decisions that are made public.

While the case held the potential to establish a significant precedent in Delaware, the justices decided it in such a way that it did not set a new legal standard for same-sex couples in the state.

In an opinion written by Justice Randy J. Holland, the court found that Erica Smith had undermined her legal argument that Sheila Smith had no legal claim on the children because she sought and accepted child support payments from Sheila Smith.

The justices found that Erica Smith could not accept the benefits of the Family Court ruling when it came to child support payments while at the same time rejecting it when it came to custody.

As a result, Holland wrote, the court did not address the issue of whether or not Sheila Smith was entitled to status as a de facto parent of the triplets.

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.stephenhyland.com/blawg/mt/mt-tb.cgi/49