Highest courts of Arkansas reverse the initial decision of the lower court on the rights of same-gender parents. Final ruling strips same-gender parents the privilege to be listed as parents on a child's birth certificate.
Following the decision of a four-member majority in the divided supreme court of the state of Arkansas, same-gender parents are no longer allowed to enlist themselves as parents in a child's birth certificate. The latest judicial decision requires a child's biological parents to enlist themselves in the corresponding columns of the document. This holds true even if the child will be legally adopted by a same-gender couple.
The decision of Arkansas high courts reverses the previous court ruling of Judge Tim Fox of Little Rock Circuit. Fox's ruling was based on a U.S. Supreme Court decision in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges, which stated that same-gender couples must be granted the same rights of marriage as opposite-gender couples, as per Pink News.
South Australia just changed the law to recognise the marriage of a man who died on his honeymoon https://t.co/a3E9NIaABe
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) December 7, 2016
According to Care2, the majority voters of the high courts argued that the decision is backed up by a necessary governmental objective of keeping track of every child's biological parentage. The birth certificates are designed to reflect this biological truth.
A spokesman who represents Attorney General Leslie Rutledge says the administration is pleased with the ruling of the high courts. The Attorney General believes that any major decision that will have a great societal impact should be rightfully decided by job legislators and not merely by circuit courts.
Upset same-gender couples argue that the high court ruling were biased. They demand that the high court follows the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges and the Arkansas case.
They strongly believe that they should be granted amended birth certificates for their children. The current situation is truly a disappointing proof that some states have failed to get rid of same-gender couple discrimination.
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