Spring 2013: Children of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) parents
Prof. Nancy Polikoff
Phone: 202-274-4232
Email: npoliko@wcl.american.edu
Office hours (Room 450): Monday 1:30 to 3 or by appointment
SYLLABUS (1/11/13 – subject to change with plenty of notice)
There is no casebook for this seminar. Materials are posted on MyWCL. You have the option of
taking a final exam (take home essay with page limit on subject distributed at the beginning of the exam
period) or writing a paper for this course (approximately 20 pages). If you want to write a paper, please
plan to meet with me early in the semester to discuss your topic. Consistent, quality class participation
can also count toward your final grade.
There will be no class on March 26. The make-up class will be a guest speaker on practicing
LGBT family law, at a time to be determined.
1/15:
LGBT parents and their children: history, demographics, examples
Chambers and Polikoff, excerpt, Family Law and Gay and Lesbian Family Law Issues in the
Twentieth Century
Gates, Family formation and raising children among same-sex couples
Mignon Moore excerpt, Invisible Families: Gay Identities, Relationships, and Motherhood among
Black Women
Judith Stacey excerpt, Unhitched: Love, Marriage, and Family Values from West Hollywood to
Western China
CNN video, Gay Parenting in the Bible Belt
Abigail Garner excerpt, Families Like Mine: Children of Gay Parents Tell it Like it Is
OPTIONAL: Which Mother for Isabella?
1/22
Mental health/social science research and its use in litigation
Patterson, Children of Lesbian and Gay Parents: Psychology, Law and Policy
Stacey and Biblarz, excerpt, (How) Does the Sexual Orientation of Parents Matter?
Samuel, New Family Structures Research and the “No Differences” Claim
Journal audit of Regnerus study
Excerpt, Jackson v. Abercrombie
Excerpt, Amicus brief of American Psychological Association et al in Windsor v. United States
Declaration of Michael Lamb in Sevcik v. Sandoval
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1/29:
How the marriage equality movement frames childrearing. [Review of Romer v. Evans and
Lawrence v. Texas if needed], Windsor v. United States, Perry v. Brown
Melissa Murray excerpt, “What’s So New about the New Illegitimacy?”
Fiona Kelly, “Severing the Link between Marriage and Children’s Best Interests: A Canadian case
study”
2/5:
Access to adoption and foster parenting: sexual orientation bans and unmarried couple bans
Excerpt, Abbie Goldberg, Lesbian and Gay Parents and their Children : “Access to Adoption”
NCLR Overview of adoption law
Lofton v. Sec. of Dept. of Children & Family Services; In re X.X.G. and N.R.G.; Kutil v. Blake (case
summary); Cole v. Arkansas Dept. of Human Services (trial court opinion)
Lynn Wardle, “Preference for Marital Couple Adoption: Constitutional and Policy Reflections,”
Arkansas Dept. of Human Services v. Cole (Ark. Supreme Court opinion)
2/12:
Children born in heterosexual marriages/relationships: custody and visitation
Excerpt, ALI Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution
Goldberg, “When Parents Come Out”
Palmore v. Sidoti, Ex Parte J.M.F., Jacoby, L.A.M. v. B.M., McGriff, Holmes, Sirney, M.A.T. v. G.S.T.
2/19:
Transgender parents and gender-variant children
Christian v. Randall, Magnuson, Daly, M.B. v. D.W.
NY Times: What’s So Bad about a Boy Who Wants to Wear a Dress?
Smith
Excerpt, Transgender Family Law
2/26:
Constitutional and statutory law: Who is a legal parent and the status of known donors
Stanley v. Illinois; Michael H. v. Gerald D. and notes on other cases
Uniform Parentage Act
Goldberg, “Unknown vs. known donor”
Donor insemination: model laws, District of Columbia statutes and form
In re K.M.H.
3/5:
Surrogacy
Goldberg, “Surrogacy”
Baby M., Note on feminism and surrogacy, Johnson v. Calvert
In re T.J.S. and A.L.S., Raftopol v. Ramey case summary, In re Baby Boy A
Summary of Illinois statute
3/19:
How a legal parent’s partner becomes a parent: second parent adoption and interpretation of
parentage statutes
In re Adoption of Tammy and In re Adoption of Doe, Boseman v. Jarrell, In re T.A.M. and E.J.M, In
re Parentage of L.B., Elisa B. v. Superior Court, Delaware statute
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4/2:
How a legal parent’s partner becomes a parent: the role of marriage/formal CU or DP status
Miller-Jenkins v. Miller-Jenkins, Debra H. v. Janice R., Gartner v. Iowa Dept. of Health
4/9:
Resolving issues when a child has only one legal parent: custody, visitation, child support
Troxel v. Granville, Boseman v. Jarrell, Debra H. v. Janice R., H.M. v. E.T.
4/16:
Interstate recognition of parentage: UCCJEA, PKPA, and the Full Faith and Credit Clause
Miller-Jenkins (Vermont 2006 and Virginia 2006); UCCJEA summary – this is optional but you
may find it useful to refer to it while reading the two Miller-Jenkins opinions; In re Sebastian,
Finstuen v Crutcher, Adar v Smith
4/23:
Can a child have more than two parents?
Vaccaro excerpt
Stacey excerpt
In re L.M.K.O., Jacob v. Shultz-Jacob, In re M.C.
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