Canada: Judge rules that a child has three parents in ‘polyamory’ case
A Canadian judge has ruled that a child to a polyamorous couple has three parents: one woman and two men are now officially legal guardians.
The Newfoundland judge, Justice Robert Fowler, ruled that the trio are all legal parents in a decision which appears to be the first of its kind in Canada.
The battle over the state legally recognizing all three adults began after the Newfoundland Ministry of Service refused to list them on the child’s birth certificate based on the province’s Vital Statistics Act.
cute child in blanket photo/ Michael Jarmoluk via pixabay.com
Fowler’s ruling is his basing his decision on the child’s biological father being “unknown,” something a standard paternity test could clear up instantly. “None of the partners in this relationship is married and, while the identity of the mother is clear, the biological father of the child is unknown,” wrote Fowler.
The judge also ruled that listing all three parents would be in the child’s best interests, which is odd considering that it denies the child the right of knowing their biological father.
“To deny this child the dual paternal parentage would not be in his best interests. It must be remembered that this is about the best interests of the child and not the best interest of the parents,” he wrote.
The child “has been born into what is believed to be a stable and loving family relationship which, although outside the traditional family model, provides a safe and nurturing environment,” Fowler opined.
“I can find nothing to disparage that relationship from the best interests of the child’s point of view.”
REAL Women vice president Gwen Landolt blasted the ruling as “truly shocking.”
She warned the decision legitimizes polyamorous relationships and paves the way for legislation to accommodate the parental recognition demands of polyamorous groupings.
Fowler’s ruling is “not based on common sense, or understanding of human nature, or of what’s necessary for a child,” she told Life Site News.
Landolt said. “To call this a stable relationship after three years is politically correct nonsense.”
The judge also described the three-way relationship as providing “a safe and nurturing environment,” Landolt said.
“Obviously he knows nothing of human beings when he says that. It’s obviously, clearly not in the best interests of the child.”
Canada’s Criminal Code does not prohibit polyamorous relationships, wrote Toronto lawyer Laurie H. Pawlitza in the Financial Post. But, does ban bigamy and polygamy, which involve marriage contracts between multiple partners.
“Polyamorous relationships are varied, and may involve a cohabiting group of three or more consenting, informed adults,” she writes.
In his ruling, Fowler cited the 2007 Ontario Court of Appeal AA vs BB decision, in which the court recognized both members of a lesbian couple and a biological father as parents of a five-year-old boy.
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