FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 3, 1997

Vermont High Court Bars Visitation after Lesbian Divorce

Vermont High Court Bars Visitation Action Between Co-Parent and Child after Lesbian Divorce

(MONTPELIER, Vermont) In a 3-2 decision, the Vermont Supreme Court has rejected a lesbian parent’s right to bring a court action to seek visitation rights with the child she raised with her former partner for three and one-half years.

According to Mary L. Bonauto, an attorney with Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) which submitted a friend of the court brief in the case, “This kind of case is all too familiar—parents battling to maintain a relationship with their children after divorce. But here there was no legal “divorce” mechanism to sort out child custody and visitation because there was no legal “marriage.” This case is a tragic example of the legal vulnerability of lesbian and gay families who have so few means of assuring themselves of a legally enforceable family status.”

Christine Titchenal and Diane Dexter were in a committed relationship for several years and tried to have a child together through donor insemination. When those attempts failed, they adopted a baby, with Diane assuming the role of “adoptive parent” since Vermont law at that time did not permit adoption by two people of the same gender. Together, they raised Sarah from the time she was seven days old, and each acknowledged the other was a mother. The couple separated when Sarah was three and a half. They had not jointly adopted at that point even though Vermont law had recently changed to permit co-parent adoption. Chris pursued legal action when Diane severely curtailed her visitation with Sarah, and it became clear how damaging her absence was to Sarah.

When Chris sought a court order requiring Diane to allow visitation, a Superior Court judge ruled the court was without the power to hear and resolve this kind of dispute. The Vermont Supreme Court agreed on Friday. Key to the Court’s ruling was the fact that co-parent adoption became available in Vermont in 1993. According to Bonauto, “This decision can be read as a strong message from the Court that lesbian co-parents in Vermont should exercise their right to joint adoption. If they don’t, the Court will not entertain custody or visitation claims from the non-legal parent if the couple later separates.”

The Court was not unreceptive to lesbian and gay families generally and stated, “Obviously, our opinion should not be read as impeding same-sex parents from child-rearing or as minimizing the importance of maintaining relationships between children and third parties with whom the children have formed significant bonds.” The Court instead ruled that Vermont law doesn’t presently recognize a way to sort out this kind of dispute in the courts, a ruling that will leave many families legally vulnerable.