Supreme Court reverses Alabama court that denied lesbian woman's adoption

[Jim Lane]

14. The Court did NOT rule that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to adopt.

The basis of this decision is much narrower, which is why it was unanimous. State law (in Georgia, where the lesbian couple then resided) allowed such adoptions, and the Court ruled only that Alabama was required to recognize Georgia's action in granting the adoption.

The real test case will be that of a married same-sex couple, when one partner seeks to adopt the child (most likely the biological child) of the other, in a state that (unlike Georgia) prohibits such adoptions. The issue will be whether that state prohibition violates the Equal Protection Clause. My impression from the news report of the recent decision is that the broader question is still open to being litigated.