Functional Parent
Legal recognition of the parent-child relationship (“parentage”) is important for many reasons, including health care and school related decisions to economic security, and much more. But for both LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ people alike, families are made in many different ways, and so there need to be multiple ways for the parent-child relationship to be legally secured. These maps illustrate some of the pathways to parental recognition that are especially important for LGBTQ families.
This map shows “functional parent doctrines” or policies, reflecting how some states recognize and extend parental rights to a person based on their relationship with a child, even if that person is not genetically and/or legally related to the child. This can include, for example, a person who helps raise their partner’s child, but who is not legally married to their partner or genetically related to their partner’s child. These doctrines are also commonly used for people who are related to the child, such as grandparents or other family members. Note that these doctrines can vary in important ways beyond what is shown on this map, including who qualifies as a functional parent and what potential proof or evidence may be required. This map is not legal advice, and other rights may exist. Please reach out to legal experts such as the LGBTQ Family Law Institute or legal advocates such as GLAD Law and NCLR.
For more information, please refer to the research of Professors Courtney Joslin and Douglas NeJaime (available by clicking “Citations & More Information” beneath the map legend), as well as to legal advocacy organizations, including GLAD Law and NCLR.
See also MAP’s June 2023 report, Relationships at Risk: Why We Need to Update State Parentage Laws to Protect Children and Families, for further discussion of the importance of legal recognition of parent-child relationships, the many pathways to legal recognition of parentage, recent examples of modernized parenting laws, and policy recommendations for all states.
Recommended citation for this set of maps:
Movement Advancement Project. 2026. “Equality Maps: Parental Recognition Laws.” www.mapresearch.org/equality-map/parental-recognition-laws/. Data as of June 12, 2026.
Recommended citation for this specific map:
Movement Advancement Project. 2026. “Equality Maps: Functional Parent Recognition.” www.mapresearch.org/equality-map/parental-recognition-laws/#functional-parent. Data as of June 12, 2026.
Percent of Adult LGBTQ Population Covered by Laws
*Note: These percentages reflect estimates of the LGBTQ adult population living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Estimates of the LGBTQ adult population in the five inhabited U.S. territories are not available, and so cannot be reflected here.
