Family recognition laws establish a secure legal relationship between a child and their parent or parents. These legal ties are essential to a child’s security and well-being. However, many state family recognition are out of date and don’t recognize all families—including families built with the assistance of fertility care, and families where a child does not have a biological connection to one or both parents. These outdated laws leave many children and families vulnerable, including LGBTQ families.
Updating family recognition laws provides safeguards not only for LGBTQ families, but also for a wide range of families formed via fertility care. Talking About Family Recognition Laws & LGBTQ Families provides guidance for conversations about these policies that can help conflicted audiences understand the vital importance of clear, accessible, and strong legal child-parent ties—and why families, no matter how they are formed, should be treated equally under the law.
