PARENTAGE ORDERS
Parentage Orders or Judgments of Parentage are court orders securing the Intended Parents' status, rights, and obligations as the legal parents of their child.
Judgments of Parentage, or Parentage Orders, are available to Intended Parents who conceived their child through assisted reproduction, including sperm donation and surrogacy.
NEW YORK
The Child Parent Security Act ("CPSA") has simplified the path to securing legal parentage for individuals, unmarried couples, and same sex couples in New York who have conceived a child through assisted reproduction. Obtaining a Judgment of Parentage is an essential part of any surrogacy journey in New York, and an advisable step for any parent of a child born through sperm donation.
The Maine Parentage Act sets forth eight main mechanisms for establishing parentage through a Judgment of Parentage, including de facto parentage and parentage through assisted reproduction. Judgments of Parentage are available to all parents and intended parents, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, or genetic connection to your child.
Janene has experience petitioning the courts in Maine and New York to have your legal parentage recognized from your child's moment of birth. This is referred to as a pre-birth order. Pre-birth orders are available for parents through gestational surrogacy and gamete donation.
Oleaga Law LLC also assists clients in securing parental rights post-birth through post-birth orders, second parent adoptions, and step parent adoptions.
The specifics of your family will dictate which process best suits your family's needs and is the best course to securing your legal parentage.