On Aug. 5, the California Supreme Court ruled, 6-1, to reverse a lower court ruling that California adoption laws did not permit second-parent adoptions. The ruling in Sharon S. v. Superior Court came as a great relief to the many GLBT parents who feared that the lower court ruling would invalidate all California second-parent adoptions, leaving their children without financial support, inheritance rights, Social Security or retirement claims from the second-parent’s estate if they died or were incapacitated. The ruling also threatened children’s health and insurance benefits by nullifying the legal relationship between children and parents, stood to deny second-parents the right to make emergency medical decisions on their child’s behalf and raised the possibility of extensive legal wrangles.

“This ruling allows thousands of parents to breathe a collective sigh of relief,” said Aimee Gelnaw, executive director of the Family Pride Coalition, in a press release. “We commend the justices in this case, who ruled for fairness and equality and set an example for other states to follow. Their decision will benefit countless thousands of California children who will have the security and protections their parents intended.”

The trouble began when Sharon Silverstein sued to invalidate her former partner’s adoption of their first child and to withdraw permission for her to adopt the second. After trying several approaches to deny her former partner contact with their children, Silverstein asked the California Supreme Court to nullify all second-parent adoptions in the state of California. Her lawyer argued that if the Supreme Court nullified an estimated 10,000 second-parent adoptions filed since 1986, the affected parents could simply file new adoption petitions under a law passed last year.

Lynn and Lori Barnes-Wallace, members of the San Diego’s GLBT parenting organization Family Matters, are co-parents of two children. They watched the case closely as it made its way through the court system.

“Being a parent has its own set of concerns,” the couple told the Gay and Lesbian Times. “Lesbian and gay parents must be legally diligent in protecting and maintaining the integrity of their families. This task can be overwhelming at times, and what is most unbelievable about this case is that it was brought about by one of our own. Fortunately, the Supreme Court of California decided to support hundreds of families [formed] over the last two decades by upholding our adoptions.”

In writing the majority opinion, California Supreme Court Justice Kathryn Werdegar stated that, “second parent adoptions offer the possibility of obtaining the security and advantages of two parents for some of California’s neediest children.”

Judi Schaim, co-chair of Family Pride Coalition, hailed the Supreme Court decision, stating that, “We’re so much more fortunate than many states to have justices that understand the needs of our children to be loved, cared for and protected.”