Adar v. Smith

639 F.3d 146 (2011)

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Adar v. Smith

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
639 F.3d 146 (2011)

  • Written by Mike Begovic, JD

Facts

Mickey Smith and Oren Adar (the couple) (plaintiffs), an unmarried, same-sex couple residing in Louisiana, legally adopted a child in New York. The couple wanted to have the child’s birth certificate reissued in Louisiana, listing them both as legal parents. Louisiana law allowed the reissuance of birth certificates for adoptive parents, but the Louisiana registrar of vital records and statistics (the registrar) (defendant) refused the request. The registrar concluded that unmarried parents could not be adoptive parents, citing Louisiana law providing that only couples who were married could adopt a child together. Instead, the registrar offered to list one parent’s name on the certificate, because single mothers and fathers were allowed to adopt under Louisiana law. The couple filed a suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief, contending that the registrar’s actions denied them full faith and credit under the United States Constitution and violated their equal-protection rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. The district court ruled for the couple on their full-faith-and-credit claim. A panel of the Fifth Circuit affirmed, but that judgment was vacated upon a decision to rehear the case en banc.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Jones, C.J.)

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