I haven’t seen this get much press but it was a court case I was following, as a gay parent, with a great deal of interest.

Fla. Must Recognize Gay Adoptions, Court Rules

A lesbian couple, Kimberly Ryan and Lara Embry, had a child and secured their legal rights and responsibilities as parent in Washington.  Then they moved to Florida where they broke up and Kimberly, the birth parent, tried to keep Lara from visitation.  A lower court ruled that she could, citing Florida adoption law, but:

“Regardless of whether the trial court believed that the Washington adoption violated a clearly established public policy in Florida,” the judge added, “it was improper for the trial court to refuse to give the Washington judgment full faith and credit.”

This may seem like a small step for justice and the rights of GLBT and our children.  Judging by the press, no one much noticed.  But it’s certainly a big step for one parent, probably a set of grandparents, and particularly a little kid in Florida.  For me, this judgment is a huge relief, to know my state would likely have to respect the legal parenting established by other states.  That is the legal situation I find ourselves in here, in Utah.  I can relax just a bit more today to know stepping across a border in the United States won’t suddenly relive me, or my husband, or our children of rights or, especially for the adults, our responsibilities.