Senate Bill 274 became law on January 1, 2014, allowing children to have more than two parents. Sen. Mark Leno, author of the legislation, said the Bill was designed for the unusual circumstance in which more than two people have legal claims of parentage, and a two-parent limit would be harmful to the child.
The Bill was drafted in response to a court case that left a child in foster care, despite the availability of a third person who had played a parental role in the child’s life. However, the Bill also includes expanding the definition of who may be responsible to financially support a minor child.
For example, under the new law, a man who raised the child of his girlfriend and her ex-boyfriend, may now be considered a third-parent under the law. And, courts could recognize the biological father, biological mother, and her same-sex partner as co-parents of a child if the three decided to raise the child together. In any situation, the important factor would be whether the two-parent limitation would be detrimental to the child.
While SB 274 expands the number of parents a child can have, it does not change who can be a parent under California law. The state’s legal definition of a parent is biologically, through marriage or domestic partnership, or by openly “holding out the child as one’s own” taking in and caring for the child. The definition does not include grandparents, stepparents, temporary caretakers, etc. As a result, such individuals will not be recognized as a third parent under SB 274, since their relationships do not meet the state’s strict definition of a parent.
California now joins Delaware, Louisiana, Maine, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia as being among the first jurisdictions to recognize that more than two people can have the legal responsibility of parenting a child. In his remarks following the Bill’s signing, Sen. Leno noted, “The structure of today’s families is evolving, and courts need the ability to recognize these changes so children are supported by the adults that play a central role in loving and caring for them.”
Sen. Leno’s comments highlight an understanding by the legislature of the changing composition of families in today’s society. Although the definition of a “parent” remains unchanged, SB 274 is a promising beginning for expanding the rights and responsibilities of parenthood. Reference: http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140SB274
For more information about support and other family law matters, contact the Reape-Rickett Law Firm at 661-288-1000. They are located at 25152 Springfield Court, Suite 100 in Valencia.