May gay couple adopt a child in USA? - Supreme Court won't hear same-sex adoptive parents case

Supreme Court won't hear same-sex adoptive parents case

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WASHINGTON, Oct 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court refused on Tuesday to consider the rights of same-sex parents in a setback for two gay men who wanted both of their names listed on their adopted son's birth certificate.

In a case closely watched by gay rights advocates, the high court rejected without comment an appeal by Oren Adar and Mickey Ray Smith, who sued to be listed as parents on a Louisiana birth certificate of the infant they adopted.

The justices let stand a ruling by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals that a Louisiana registrar's decision not to list both men does not violate the child's right to equal protection under the law and does not deny legal recognition of the New York adoption.

In Louisiana, adopted children can get new birth certificates with their new parents' names on them. In the state, only married couples may adopt a child.

Because the gay couple was not married, the registrar refused to list both names on the birth certificate but offered to put one name on because Louisiana also allows a single-parent adoption.

There have been a number of major legal battles over the rights of homosexuals, including a landmark gay marriage case from California and cases on the rights of gays to adopt.

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