We start with a full conversation about your family: your marital status (married, in a civil union, or unmarried), how your family was formed (biology, adoption, surrogacy, donor conception), where you live now and where you might live in the future, and what specifically brought you to us. LGBTQ family law often involves multiple statutes and proactive planning. By the end of the consultation, you'll know what protections you currently have, what gaps exist, and what we can do about them.

What gets filed depends on what we're doing: a Petition for Adoption, a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage or Civil Union, a Petition for Parentage, or various pre-birth or post-birth orders for assisted reproduction. Each has specific procedural requirements. We handle the documentation so the right paperwork is filed in the right court.

Most LGBTQ family law matters resolve through agreement: adoption petitions where both parents consent, parentage actions where the parties want clarity rather than conflict, divorce settlements between cooperating spouses, and pre-conception agreements between intended parents and surrogates or donors. We draft the documents that capture the agreement and put it in front of the court for approval.

Some matters require court appearances: adoption finalization hearings (typically quick and celebratory), contested divorces or custody matters, and parentage disputes. We represent you through the process. For contested LGBTQ family law matters, we bring awareness of how the law has evolved and where ambiguities still exist.

After adoption, divorce, or parentage establishment, we handle follow-up items: name changes, updated birth certificates, estate planning recommendations, and tax filings tied to the change in legal status. We also help families address future life events: additional children, relocation to another state, or changes in family structure that require updated documents.