Out-of-State Adoptions by Same-Sex Couples Are OK

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this afternoon that an Oklahoma law preventing same-sex couples from getting birth certificates for children adopted in other states is illegal under the “Full Faith and Credit Clause” of the U.S. Constitution. The Court thus upheld a previous U.S. District Court ruling that said a child born in Oklahoma and adopted in another state by a same-sex couple should receive an Oklahoma birth certificate listing the adoptive parents.

(On a related note, Colorado today became the 10th state to legalize adoption by same-sex parents and the 20th to ban workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation. Governor Bill Ritter had approved the bills last May.)