If second-parent adoption is not a legal option in certain counties or states, the
Human Rights Campaign suggests taking precautionary steps, such as: a written custody agreement or a co-parent agreement between partners. Also suggested is gathering evidence to prove you are a family.
Nebraska In
Nebraska, any single adult, stepparent, or married couple may adopt. In a 2002 court case,
In re Adoption of Luke, 263 Neb. 365, the Supreme Court of Nebraska ruled that a biological parent's unmarried partner could not adopt their child in a second parent adoption. In 2021, an unmarried lesbian couple sued Nebraska's health department for not allowing both of them to be on their son's birth certificate. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services denied their request. They stated that the only routes to legal parenthood are
marriage, adoption, or biological relationship. According to the lawsuit, Nebraska case law prohibits second-parent adoption by an unmarried non-birth parent. , Nebraska law says that "any minor child may be adopted by any adult person or persons", though it references
In re Adoption of Luke. A bill introduced in January 2025 proposes amending the law to require the original parent to give consent that states specifically that they, as sole legal parent, want "the child or adult child to be adopted by a second adult person."
States with restrictions Alabama The
Family Equality Council wrote in 2016 that second parent adoptions were unavailable in
Alabama. This followed an attempt by the
Alabama Supreme Court to overturn a second parent same-sex adoption that had been validly granted by
Georgia.
Stepparent adoption is legal in Alabama. "[T]he first requirement to be met", said a 2022 article published by the Alabama State Bar, "is that the petitioning parties be 'husband and wife.' The adoption code makes no exception for couples living together who are not married." The law was updated in 2023 to use the phrasing "an unmarried couple may not adopt a minor" but kept the requirement of marriage. Additionally, some courts have turned down requests to adopt a same-sex spouse’s child.
Kansas The law says: "Any adult, or married adult couple jointly, may adopt any minor or adult as their child."
North Carolina In
North Carolina, married couples can jointly adopt if they've been married at least six months. A biological parent's spouse can adopt their child if the other biological parent waives their parental rights. This is called a stepparent adoption. Individuals can adopt as well.
Utah To adopt in
Utah, one must either be married and have permission from their spouse (i.e., stepparent adoption) or single and not living with another person. Anyone cohabitating in a non-marital sexual relationship cannot adopt in Utah. While there is no law specifically permitting unmarried couples to adopt (i.e., second parent adoption),
Equality Utah says it is possible to obtain these adoptions. ==See also==