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No. 416PA08-2 FIFTH DISTRICT SUPREME COURT OF NORTH CAROLINA ******************************************** JULIA CATHERINE BOSEMAN, ) Plaintiff ) ) v. ) ) MELISSA ANN JARRELL, ) Defendant ) ) and ) ) From New Hanover County MELISSA ANN JARRELL, ) 07-CVD-625 Third-Party Plaintiff ) COA08-957 ) v. ) ) JULIA CATHERINE BOSEMAN ) and ) NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT ) OF HEALTH AND HUMAN ) SERVICES, ) Third-Party Defendants ) ) ******************************************** BRIEF OF AMICI THE EVAN B. DONALDSON ADOPTION INSTITUTE, THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR ADOPTION LAW AND POLICY, THE BARTON CHILD LAW & POLICY CENTER, THE CENTER FOR ADOPTION POLICYAND PROFESSORS KATHARINE T. BARTLETT, NAOMI CAHN, JUNE CARBONE, JOAN H. HOLLINGER, MAXINE EICHNER AND BARBARA WOODHOUSE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLEE ******************************************** i INDEX TABLE OF CASES AND AUTHORITIES.............................................................iv INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................1 STATEMENT OF INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE...............................................2 ARGUMENT AND AUTHORITY...........................................................................8 I. RECOGNITION OF ADOPTIONS BY A SECOND PARENT IN APPROPRIATE CASES FULFILLS THE BASIC PURPOSE OF NORTH CAROLINA ADOPTION LAWS: TO PROTECT THE WELFARE AND BEST INTERESTS OF CHILDREN............................8 A. Adoptions by a Second Parent Provide Material Benefits to Children as well as Legal Protection of Healthy and Beneficial Parent-Child Relationships...........................................10 B. Adoptions by a Second Parent Provide Children with Significant Psychological Advantages...........................................12 i. The Formation of Parent-Child Attachments is Critical to a Child's Healthy Development ....................13 ii. Attachment Relationships Develop Despite the Absence of a Biological or Legal Connection Between the Parent and Child ........................................15 iii. Sexual Orientation is Irrelevant to the Development of Strong Attachment Bonds ...................16 iv. Children Experience Severe Emotional and Psychological Harm when their Attachment Relationships are Severed ..............................................20 ii II. OTHER STATES WITH LAWS SIMILAR TO NORTH CAROLINA'S HAVE RECOGNIZED THAT IT IS IN A CHILD'S BEST INTEREST TO UPHOLD AN ADOPTION BY A SECOND PARENT ..................................................................................24 A. Courts Construe Adoption Statutes According to Legislative Mandates to Provide for Children's Best Interest..........................24 B. Courts Have Found No Legitimate State Interests Supporting Denial of a Parent's Ability to Provide His or Her Child with a Second Legal Parent and Ample State Interest Supporting Such Adoptions ..............................................................................26 C. Courts Recognize Their Obligations to Apply Adoption Law to Reflect the Reality of Children's Lives and to Avoid Absurd and Unjust Results.............................................................28 CONCLUSION........................................................................................................34 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE ................................................................................35 iii TABLE OF CASES AND AUTHORITIES CASES Adoptions of B.L.V.B. and E.L.V.B., 160 Vt. 368, 628 A.2d 1271 (1993)................................................................... 26-30 Adoption of M.A., 930 A.2d 1088 (Me. 2007).........................................................12 Adoption of Tammy, 416 Mass. 205, 619 N.E.2d 315 (1993) ........................... 26-27 Goodson v. Castellanos, 214 S.W.3d 741 (Tex. App. 2007) ............................ 31-32 Ikerd v. R. R., 209 N.C. 270, 183 S.E. 402 (1936) ..................................................30 In re Adoption of Clark, 327 N.C. 61, 393 S.E.2d 791 (1990).......................... 25-26 In re Adoption of K.S.P., 804 N.E.2d 1253 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004)........... 26-27, 29-31 In re Adoption of R.B.F., 569 Pa. 269, 803 A.2d 1195 (2002)................................30 In re Adoption of Two Children by H.N.R., 666 A.2d 535 (N.J. App. Div. 1995) ........................................................... 25, 28-29 In re Hart, 806 A.2d 1179 (Del. Fam. Ct. 2001)......................................... 28, 31-32 In re Jacob, 86 N.Y.2d 651, 660 N.E.2d 397 (N.Y. 1995) ..................... 9, 25-26, 32 In re K.M., 271 Ill. App. 3d 189, 653 N.E.2d 888 (1995) .......................................25 In re M.M.D & B.H.M., 662 A.2d 837 (D.C. 1995) .......................................... 26-27 In re Petition of K.M. and D.M., 274 Ill. App. 3d 189, 653 N.E.2d 888 (1995)..........................................................26 King v. Baldwin, 276 N.C. 316, 172 S.E.2d 12 (1970) ...........................................30 Sharon S. v. Superior Court, 31 Cal.4th 417, 73 P.3d 554 (2003).............. 25, 27-28 iv State v. Humphries, 210 N.C. 406, 186 S.E. 473 (1936).........................................30 Trimble v. Gordon, 430 U.S. 762 (1977).................................................................29 Troxel v. Granville, 530 U.S. 57 (2000) ....................................................................8 STATUTES, CODES & TREATESES 82 C. J. S. STATUTES §§ 316, 323, 325, 344 (1953) ................................................30 N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-1-100(b)(1)..........................................................................9 N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-1-100(c) ..............................................................................9 N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-1-100(d) ..............................................................................9 N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-3-601 .................................................................................30 N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-3-602 .................................................................................30 BOOKS & REPORTS JOHN BOWLBY, ATTACHMENT (2d ed., 1982) ..........................................................13 JOSEPH GOLDSTEIN, ET AL., BEYOND THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD (2d ed., 1979) .....................................................................................................15, 20 WILLIAM HODGES, INTERVENTIONS OF CHILDREN OF DIVORCE: CUSTODY, ACCESS, AND PSYCHOTHERAPY (2d. ed., 1991)........................................................21 BEVERLY JAMES, HANDBOOK FOR TREATMENT OF ATTACHMENT-TRAUMA PROBLEMS IN CHILDREN (Free Press 1994)..............................................................13 MELVIN KONNER, CHILDHOOD (Little Brown & Co. 1991).....................................13 v BARBARA M. MCCANDLISH, AGAINST ALL ODDS: LESBIAN MOTHER FAMILY DYNAMICS, IN GAY AND LESBIAN PARENTS (Frederick W. Bozett ed., 1987).........19 NAT'L RESEARCH COUNCIL & INST. OF MEDICINE, FROM NEURONS TO NEIGHBORHOODS: THE SCIENCE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT (Jack P. Shonkoff & Deborah A. Phillips, Eds., 2000) ......................... 13-15, 20, 22 CHARLOTTE J. PATTERSON, GAY FATHERS, IN THE ROLE OF THE FATHER IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT (Michael E. Lamb ed., 4th ed., 2004) ..................................18 ADAM P. ROMERO, AMANDA K. BAUMLE, M.V. LEE BADGETT, AND GARY J. GATES, CENSUS SNAPSHOT (Williams Institute December 2007)...................... 10-11 DANIEL J. SEIGEL, THE DEVELOPING MIND: TOWARD A NEUROBIOLOGY OF INTERPERSONAL EXPERIENCE (Guilford Press 1999) ......................................... 13-14 TAVIA SIMMONS, AND MARTIN O'CONNELL, MARRIED-COUPLE AND UNMARRIED-PARTNER HOUSEHOLDS: 2000 CENSUS 2000 SPECIAL REPORTS (U.S. Census Bureau 2003)......................................................................................10 DAVID SMITH AND GARY J. GATES, GAY AND LESBIAN FAMILIES IN THE UNITED STATES: SAME-SEX UNMARRIED PARTNER HOUSEHOLDS (Human Rights Campaign 2001) ...........................................................................................10 FIONA L. TASKER & SUSAN GOLOMBOK, GROWING UP IN A LESBIAN FAMILY: EFFECTS ON CHILD DEVELOPMENT (Guilford Press 1997)................................. 22-23 PERIODICALS & ARTICLES American Academy of Pediatrics, Family Pediatrics: Report of the Task Force on the Family, 111 PEDIATRICS, 1541 (2003) ...............................................17 American Academy of Pediatrics, Technical Report: Coparent or Second- Parent Adoption by Same-Sex Parents, 109 PEDIATRICS 341 (2002) ...............16, 17 American Academy of Pediatrics: Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, Developmental Issues For Young Children in Foster Care, 106 PEDIATRICS 1145 (2000) ...................................................14, 20 vi Susanne Bennett, Is There a Primary Mom? Parental Perceptions of Attachment Bond Hierarchies Within Lesbian Adoptive Families, 20 CHILD & ADOLESCENT SOC. WORK J. 159 (2003)......................................................... 15-16 John Bowlby, Attachment and Loss: Retrospect and Prospect, 52 AM. J. ORTHOPSYCHIATRY 664 (1982)................................................................................20 A. Brewaeys, et al., Donor Insemination: Child Development and Family Functioning in Lesbian Mother Families, 12 HUMAN REPRODUCTION 1349 (1997) ................................................................................................................. 18-19 James G. Byrne et al., Practitioner Review: The Contribution of Attachment Theory to Child Custody Assessments, 46 J. OF CHILD PSYCHOL. AND PSYCHIATRY 115 (2005).....................................................................................14, 22 Raymond W. Chan et al., Psychosocial Adjustment Among Children Conceived Via Donor Insemination by Lesbian and Heterosexual Mothers, 69 CHILD DEV. 443 (1998).......................................................................................16 Frank J. Dyer, Termination of Parental Rights in Light of Attachment Theory: The Case of Kaylee, 10 PSYCHOL. PUB. POL'Y & L. 5 (2004) ...................20 Yvon Gauthier et al., Clinical Application of Attachment Theory in Permanency Planning for Children in Foster Care: The Importance of Continuity of Care, 25 INFANT MENTAL HEALTH J. 379 (2004)........................ 22-23 Susan Golombok et al., The European Study of Assisted Reproduction Families: Family Functioning and Child Development, 11 HUMAN REPRODUCTION 2324 (1996)....................................................................................19 Melissa Holtzman, Definitions of the Family as an Impetus for Legal Change in Custody Decision Making: Suggestions from an Empirical Case Study, 31 LAW & SOCIAL INQUIRY 1 (2006) ............................................................23 Joan B. Kelly & Michael E. Lamb, Using Child Development Research to Make Appropriate Custody and Access Decisions for Young Children, 38 FAMILY & CONCILIATION COURTS REV. 297 (2000).......................................... 20-21 vii Martha Kirkpatrick et al., Lesbian Mothers and Their Children: A Comparative Study, 51 AM. J. ORTHOPSYCHIATRY 545 (1981)...............................23 Ana H. Marty, et al., Supporting Secure Parent-Child Attachments: The Role of the Non-Parental Caregiver, 175 EARLY CHILDHOOD DEV. AND CARE 271 (2005) ...........................................................................................................16, 20, 22 Ellen C. Perrin, Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health, Technical Report: Coparent or Second-Parent Adoption by Same- Sex Parents, 109 PEDIATRICS 341 (2002) .................................................... 11-12, 18 Leslie M. Singer et al., Mother-Infant Attachment in Adoptive Families, 56 CHILD DEV. 1543 (1985).....................................................................................15 Judith Stacey & Timothy Biblarz, (How) Does the Sexual Orientation of Parents Matter?, 66 AMER. SOC. REV. 159 (2001) ........................................... 17-18 Rayford W. Thweatt, Divorce: Crisis Intervention Guided By Attachment Theory, 34 AM. J. OF PSYCHOTHERAPY 240 (1980) .................................................21 Andrew L. Weinstein, Comment: The Crossroads of A Legal Fiction And The Reality Of Families, 61 ME. L. REV. 319 (2009)..............................................11 viii INTRODUCTION 1 Jacob William Boseman-Jarrell has two legal parents—his biological mother, Appellant Melissa Jarrell, and his adoptive mother, Appellee Julia Boseman. Nearly five years ago, Appellant actively sought and voluntarily consented to Jacob's adoption by Appellee in order to ensure that he would have a second parent and all the benefits and protections of a relationship with both of his parents. 2 Appellant now asks this Court to set aside and declare "void" the adoption decree that recognized Appellee Julia Boseman as Jacob's second parent. On the basis of our collective knowledge and experience, Amici urge this Court to uphold the finality of the adoption order at issue and affirm the appellate decision below. Amici Curiae ("Amici") are non-profit organizations and individuals dedicated to improving child welfare and adoption policy in North Carolina and across the United States through research, policy development, teaching and advocacy. Collectively, Amici possess an extraordinary breadth and 1 Amici accept and adopt the Appellee's Statement of the Case, Statement of Questions Presented and Statement of Facts. 2 Amici use the term "adoption by a second parent" to indicate an adoption where a parent consents to their child's adoption by the parent's partner while waiving their own right to be relieved of their parental rights and obligations. Upon the court's approval of the adoption, the child remains the child of the first parent and becomes the child of the second parent. 1 depth of knowledge about adoption and child welfare, conduct extensive research focused on adoption by same-sex couples, promulgate national standards for best practices in adoption services and are leaders in the field. Amici seek to provide the Court with the findings of social science research on child development and the consensus of child welfare and adoption experts that overwhelmingly supports the benefits for children of having two legal parents. Amici will also show that this research and professional consensus is consistent with the judicial interpretations of adoption laws in a number of other states with statutory provisions similar to those in North Carolina that have recognized the validity and benefits of second parent adoptions.3 STATEMENT OF IDENTITY AND INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE Amici are organizations and individuals with specialized knowledge that should aid the Court in analyzing the legal issues in this case. Each of the organizational amici work in the field of adoption and have expertise in adoption, family and child welfare law and policy as set forth briefly below: The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute ("Adoption Institute") is a national, non-profit organization devoted to improving adoption policy and 3 For the purposes of brevity, Amici do not repeat the legal arguments set forth in Appellee's brief, which amici fully support, but instead focus on the social science research supporting her position. 2 practice. To achieve this goal, the Adoption Institute engages in research regarding adoption, trains and educates child welfare professionals, and advances public policies that support ethical, high quality adoption practices. The National Center for Adoption Law & Policy ("NCALP") seeks to improve the law, policies, and practices associated with child protection and adoption systems through education, advocacy, and research. NCALP conducts research on methods by which foster care and adoption processes can be improved, and works to bring about these improvements through legal and policy reform and by educating child welfare systems stakeholders about ways to make adoption law support the best interests of children. In 2008, the NCALP was named an "Angel in Adoption" by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute for its outstanding advocacy on behalf of children in the nation's child welfare system. The outcome in this case is of fundamental interest to NCALP because it believes that children deserve healthy stable homes. NCALP advocates for laws, policies, and practices that further this goal for all foster and adoptive children, including those raised by or cared for by same-sex parents. NCALP believes that blanket barriers to permanency based on sexual orientation, which are unsupported by existing research, can compromise healthy outcomes and are not in the best interests of children. 3 The Barton Child Law & Policy Center ("Barton Center") is a program of Emory Law School. Its work includes policy development and implementation, legislative advocacy, systemic reform, collaborative efforts with community groups and government agencies, training of professionals and volunteers, and representation of child clients. The Barton Center currently houses Barton Child Policy Clinic, Barton Legislative Clinic, Barton Juvenile Defender Clinic and Barton A.P.P.E.A.L.S Clinic. Faculty of the Center are experts in child welfare law, adoption law, juvenile justice, education law and appellate practice. Barton is committed to the principle that laws and policies regarding children must be evidence-based and must promote the welfare and rights of children. It supports laws that promote safety, well-being and permanency for all court-involved children, that respect children's rights, and that avoid unnecessary disruptions of children's family relationships. Legal services provided by the Barton Center are provided at no cost to its clients. The work of the Barton Center is funded by Emory Law School, private donations, grants from foundations, and contracts with a variety of organizations. The Center for Adoption Policy (CAP) is a non-profit organization, whose mission is to provide research, analysis, advice and education to practitioners and the public about current legislation and practices governing 4 ethical domestic and intercountry adoption in the United States, Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa. CAP is an independent entity. It is not affiliated with any agency or entity involved in the placement of children. Professors Katharine T. Bartlett, A. Kenneth Pye Professor of Law, and former Dean of Duke Law School; Naomi Cahn, John Theodore Fey Research Professor of Law at The George Washington University Law School; June Carbone, Edward A. Smith/Missouri Chair of Law, the Constitution and Society at the University of Missouri at Kansas City; Maxine Eichner, Professor of Law University of North Carolina School of Law; Joan Heifetz Hollinger, Lecturer-in-Residence in Family Law, University of California, Berkeley School of Law; Barbara Woodhouse, L.Q.C. Lamar Professor of Law and Co-Director, Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic, Emory University School of Law; are leading scholars in the field of family, child welfare, and adoption law and policy. Each of the professor amici have extensive scholarship and expertise that should aid the Court, as noted briefly below: Professor Bartlett served as Dean of Duke Law School from 2000- 2007. At Duke, she teaches family law and publishes widely in the fields of family law, gender theory, employment law, theories of social change, and legal education. Bartlett served as a reporter for the American Law 5 Institute's Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution (2002), for which she was responsible for the provisions relating to child custody. Professor Cahn teaches courses on family law, trusts and estates, and child, family, and state at The George Washington University Law School. She has published scholarship in the Duke Journal of Gender Law & Policy, Georgetown Journal of Gender & Law, Harvard Journal of Law & Gender, West Virginia Law Review, and William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal, among others, on topics related to family law and reproductive technology. Professor Carbone writes extensively about the legal issues surrounding marriage, divorce and family obligations, especially within the context of the recent revolutions in biotechnology. She has co-authored the third edition of Family Law (Aspen, 2005), and teaches Property, Family Law, Assisted Reproduction and Bioethics at the University of Missouri- Kansas City School of Law. Maxine Eichner is a Professor of Law at University of North Carolina School of Law and an editor of the leading casebook on family law: Family Law: Cases, Text, Problems. She is a former law clerk to Judge Louis Oberdorfer, United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and Judge Betty Fletcher, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Professor Hollinger is the Reporter for the Uniform Adoption Act 6 (1994) and is centrally involved in other legislative reforms, including the Revised Uniform Parentage Act (2002) and the implementation of the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption. She is the principal author of the three volume Adoption Law & Practice (Lexis/Matthew Bender 1988-2009), which is the premier treatise in adoption law, and of numerous other scholarly articles on parentage and adoption law and policy. She has served as amicus on behalf of children's interests before many state and federal appeals courts, including those that have recognized legal and economic protections for children raised by same-sex parents. Professor Woodhouse is among the nation's foremost experts on children's rights, having published more than 60 articles and book chapters on child law, child welfare, comparative and international family law and constitutional law. In addition to her chair at Emory University School of Law, Woodhouse is co-director of the Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic at Emory. She has also taught at the law schools of the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Florida, where she was founder and director of Levin College of Law's Center on Children and Families. In OT '84, Woodhouse was law clerk to Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor of the U.S. Supreme Court. As individuals with expertise in children's rights and the research on 7 child development, Amici are particularly well-situated to assist this Court in understanding the policy and legal implications of this case. ARGUMENT AND AUTHORITY I. RECOGNITION OF ADOPTIONS BY A SECOND PARENT FULFILLS THE BASIC PURPOSE OF NORTH CAROLINA ADOPTION LAWS: TO PROTECT THE WELFARE AND BEST INTERESTS OF CHILDREN. The United States Supreme Court acknowledged the changing nature of the American family when it observed that "[t]he demographic changes of the past century make it difficult to speak for an average American family," and the "composition of families varies greatly from household to household." Troxel v. Granville, 530 U.S. 57, 63 (2000). Because states have an interest in securing vital parent-child relationships for all the children within their jurisdiction, many states, including North Carolina, have expressly directed their courts to interpret their adoption statutes liberally in order to serve the interests of children who are the subject of an adoption petition. Assuming the standard statutory prerequisites, such as notice and consent, are met, this approach assures that state adoption laws can meet the needs of every child regardless of whether the legislature anticipated the particular circumstances that may arise within individual families. Although state legislatures may not have envisioned the precise family structures at issue in many of today's adoption cases, most state 8 courts are empowered with sufficient flexibility to allow those adoptions that will best serve children's interests. Indeed, the very first statute in Chapter 48, Adoptions, expressly mandates that "[t]he primary purpose of this Chapter is to advance the welfare of minors." N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-1- 100(b)(1). The courts have been instructed that, "[i]n construing this Chapter, the needs, interests, and rights of minor adoptees are primary." N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-1-100(c). Based on this unambiguous and mandatory language, North Carolina adoption statutes must be construed in a manner that places the welfare of children foremost. Moreover, the statute directs that "This Chapter shall be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying purposes and policies." N.C. GEN. STAT. § 48-1- 100(d) (emphasis added). Accordingly, North Carolina courts have the authority and responsibility to construe and apply the adoption provisions in conformity with these mandatory directives. As the New York Court of Appeals aptly noted with respect to adoption law and statutory construction: "What is to be construed strictly and applied rigorously in this sensitive area of the law, however, is legislative purpose as well as legislative language." In re Jacob, 86 N.Y.2d 651, 657, 660 N.E.2d 397, 399 (N.Y. 1995). As explained below, adoption by a second parent provides critical practical and emotional stability for North Carolina children, to the benefit 9 of the individual children and the state as a whole. This Court should continue to construe North Carolina's adoption statutes to serve the needs of children being raised in diverse family settings. The benefits that arise from adoption by a second parent are wholly consistent with the purposes of North Carolina's adoption laws and should inform the Court's analysis here. A. Adoptions by a Second Parent Provide Material Benefits to Children as well as Legal Protection of Healthy and Beneficial Parent-Child Relationships. Adoptions by a second parent are the only means by which children raised by lesbian and gay couples in North Carolina may create the legal relationships necessary to provide material benefits to the children they are jointly raising. A significant number of these children reside in North Carolina.4 More than 16,000 same-sex couples in North Carolina self- reported as such in the 2000 U.S. Census -- a 720% increase from 1990. 4 According to the 2000 U.S. Census, there are approximately 600,000 same- sex couples in the United States. TAVIA SIMMONS, AND MARTIN O'CONNELL, MARRIED-COUPLE AND UNMARRIED-PARTNER HOUSEHOLDS: 2000. CENSUS 2000 SPECIAL REPORTS (U.S. Census Bureau 2003). More than 30% of these couples have at least one child, and over half of that 30% have two or more children. Id. Thus, at least 200,000 children--possibly more than 400,000--in America (these numbers do not include single lesbian or single gay parents) are being raised by parents who are same-sex couples. The 2000 U.S. Census also reported that lesbian and gay families live in 99.3% of all U.S. counties. DAVID SMITH AND GARY J. GATES, GAY AND LESBIAN FAMILIES IN THE UNITED STATES: SAME-SEX UNMARRIED PARTNER HOUSEHOLDS (Human Rights Campaign 2001) ("HRC study"). 10 ADAM P. ROMERO, AMANDA K. BAUMLE, M.V. LEE BADGETT, AND GARY J. GATES, CENSUS SNAPSHOT (Williams Institute, December 2007). The needs of the children in these families and therefore the importance of legal adoption by both parents of a same-sex couple cannot be overstated. See, e.g., Andrew L. Weinstein, Comment: The Crossroads Of A Legal Fiction And The Reality Of Families, 61 ME. L. REV. 319, 351 (2009). Children need to know that their relationships with both parents are legally stable. Ellen C. Perrin, Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health, Technical Report: Coparent or Second-Parent Adoption by Same-Sex Parents, 109 PEDIATRICS 341, 342 (2002). Moreover, a child ought to have the security that comes along with legal acknowledgment of parental rights and responsibilities. Id. When the law recognizes two legal parents a child benefits in at least the following six tangible ways: (1) the child is protected from losing his or her only remaining parent if one parent dies or becomes incapacitated, such that relatives of the deceased parent are not able to remove the child from the care and custody of the second parent; (2) the child is able to maintain a relationship with both parents if the couple separates; (3) the child is entitled to receive child support from both parents if the couple separates; (4) the child is guaranteed eligibility for health benefits from both parents; (5) the 11 child has either or both parents available to make necessary and emergency medical, educational, health care, or custodial decisions; and (6) the child has more financial security in the event of the disability or death of either parent because of the child's entitlement to Social Security benefits and other intestate and governmental benefits. Id.5 B. Adoptions by a Second Parent Provide Children with Significant Psychological Advantages. Respecting the integrity of Jacob's 2005 adoption order comports not only with this State's statutes and case law, but also with more than three decades of social science research. This research has been conducted pursuant to scientific methods and has been subject to critical review by outside experts, typically during the peer review process that precedes publication in a scholarly journal or approval of a position by a professional organization). These findings demonstrate that protecting the relationship between children and their parents is essential to children's healthy development and overall well-being, irrespective of the parents' sexual orientation or their biogenetic connection to the child. 5 See also, Adoption of M.A., 930 A.2d 1088, 1097 (Me. 2007) (listing the rights, responsibilities, and benefits of joint adoption to include: a continued, certain relationship with an adoptive parent in the event of death of one of the adoptive parents; the eligibility of the child for public and private benefits such as Social Security, employment benefits, and intestate inheritance (among others); and love, affection, and guidance from two parents instead of one). 12 i. The Formation of Parent-Child Attachments is Critical to a Child's Healthy Development Child development research overwhelmingly shows that children form strong bonds of attachment to their parents early in life and these attachments strengthen and develop as children grow older. See, e.g., JOHN BOWLBY, ATTACHMENT (2d ed., 1982); MELVIN KONNER, CHILDHOOD 84-87 (Little Brown & Co. 1991). An "attachment relationship" is defined as a "reciprocal, enduring, emotional, and physical affiliation between a child and a caregiver" through which "children form their concepts of self, others and the world." BEVERLY JAMES, HANDBOOK FOR TREATMENT OF ATTACHMENT-TRAUMA PROBLEMS IN CHILDREN 1-3 (Free Press 1994). The research findings illustrate that "what young children learn, how they react to the events and people around them, and what they expect from themselves and others are deeply affected by their relationships with parents." NAT'L RESEARCH COUNCIL & INST. OF MEDICINE, FROM NEURONS TO NEIGHBORHOODS: THE SCIENCE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT 226 (Jack P. Shonkoff & Deborah A. Phillips, Eds., 2000). Modern developmental psychology and neurology confirm that attachment relationships are the major environmental factors that shape the development of the child's brain during its period of maximal growth and create the 13 central foundation of a child's development. See DANIEL J. SEIGEL, THE DEVELOPING MIND: TOWARD A NEUROBIOLOGY OF INTERPERSONAL EXPERIENCE 67-120 (Guilford Press 1999); see also, American Academy of Pediatrics: Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, Developmental Issues For Young Children in Foster Care, 106 PEDIATRICS 1145 (2000) (stating that "emotional and cognitive disruptions in the early lives of children have the potential to impair brain development"). Among other things, "[attachment] relationships shape the development of self-awareness, social competence, conscience, emotional growth and emotion regulation, [and] learning and cognitive growth." Nat'l Research Council and Inst. of Medicine, supra, at 265; see also James G. Byrne et al., Practitioner Review: The Contribution of Attachment Theory to Child Custody Assessments, 46 J. OF CHILD PSYCHOL. AND PSYCHIATRY 115, 118 (2005) (finding that secure attachment relationships provide children with a sense of emotional security, the ability to cope with stress, and protection against harm).6 6 See also American Academy of Pediatrics: Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, supra, at 1146 ("Attachment to a primary caregiver is essential to the development of emotional security and social conscience."). 14 ii. Attachment Relationships Develop Despite the Absence of a Biological or Legal Connection Between the Parent and Child Attachment bonds invariably develop regardless of whether the parent and child are biologically linked. See JOSEPH GOLDSTEIN, ET AL., BEYOND THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD (2d ed., 1979); see also Leslie M. Singer et al., Mother-Infant Attachment in Adoptive Families, 56 CHILD DEV. 1543 (1985). In fact, what determines whether a child develops an attachment relationship is not biology but whether the adult who is parenting the child: on a continuing, day-to-day basis, through interaction, companionship, interplay, and mutuality, fulfills the child's psychological needs for a parent, as well as the child's physical needs. The psychological parent may be a biological, adoptive, foster, or common-law parent, or any other person. Goldstein, supra at 98. See also National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, supra, at 234 ("[C]riteria for identification of attachment figures…[include] provision of physical and emotional care, continuity or consistency in the child's life, and emotional investment in the child."). It is the quality and nature of the interaction between parent and child, not any genetic connection, which creates and sustains these attachment relationships that have such a critical impact on a child's development. See Susanne Bennett, Is There a Primary Mom? Parental Perceptions of Attachment Bond Hierarchies Within Lesbian Adoptive Families, 20 CHILD 15 & ADOLESCENT SOC. WORK J. 159, 161 (2003) ("[T]he nature of the interaction…is more important than the person's legal or biological tie to the child."); Ana H. Marty, et al., Supporting Secure Parent-Child Attachments: The Role of the Non-Parental Caregiver, 175 EARLY CHILDHOOD DEV. AND CARE 271, 273 (2005) ("[T]he quality of [children's] attachment relationships is dependent on the nature of the interactions with their parents or other caregivers."). 7 iii. Sexual Orientation is Irrelevant to the Development of Strong Attachment Bonds The resounding consensus among the country's leading pediatric, psychological, psychiatric and child welfare service providers and scholars is that children raised by gay and lesbian parents are as well adjusted and as psychologically, emotionally, educationally, and socially successful as 7 See also American Academy of Pediatrics, Technical Report: Coparent or Second-Parent Adoption by Same-Sex Parents, 109 PEDIATRICS 341 (2002) (finding that "[c]hildren's optimal development seems to be influenced more by the nature of the relationships and interactions within the family unit than by the particular structural form it takes"); Raymond W. Chan et al., Psychosocial Adjustment Among Children Conceived Via Donor Insemination by Lesbian and Heterosexual Mothers, 69 CHILD DEV. 443, 454 (1998) ("[O]ur results are consistent with the general hypothesis that children's well-being is more a function of parenting and relationship processes within the family…[than] household composition or demographic factors."). 16 children of heterosexual parents.8 Studies have also concluded that a parent's sexual orientation is immaterial to the formation and importance of children's attachments, and children are just as likely to form close bonds with lesbian or gay parents. The American Academy of Pediatrics, Family Pediatrics: Report of the Task Force on the Family, 111 PEDIATRICS, 1541, 1550 (2003) ("Research has found that parental sexual orientation per se has no measurable effect on the quality of parent-child relationships..."). "[E]very relevant study to date shows that parental sexual orientation per se has no measurable effect on the quality of parent-child relationships or on 8 See, e.g., American Academy of Pediatrics, Technical Report: Coparent or Second-Parent Adoption by Same-Sex Parents, 109 Pediatrics 341, 341 (2002); American Psychiatric Association ("APA"), Adoption and Co- parenting of Children by Same-sex Couples: Position Statement (2002), at http://www.psych.org/du/other_res/lib_archives/archives/200214.pdf ("APA Position Statement"); American Psychological Assotiation, Resolution on Sexual Orientation, Parents, and Children (2004), at http://www.apa.org/pi/lgbc/policy/parentschildren.pdf (formalizing conclusion previously reached in Lesbian and Gay Parenting: A Resource for Psychologists, at http:/www.apa.org/pi/parent.html (1995)); American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Policy Statement: Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Parents (1999), at http://www.aacap.org/publications/policy/ps46.htm; CWLA, Position Statement on Parenting of Children by Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults (2005), at http://www.cwla.org/programs/culture/glbtqposition.htm ("CWLA Position Statement") (reaffirming prior opposition to assessing adopting applicants on their sexual orientation, which was incorporated into the 2000 Standards); NASW, Social Work Speaks: Policy Statements 2000- 03, 194 (2000) ("NASW Policy Statement"); NACAC, Position Statement on Eliminating Categorical Restrictions in Foster Care and Adoption (2007), at http://www. nacac.org/policy/positions.html#eliminating ("NACAC Position Statement"). 17 children's mental health or social adjustment . . . ." Judith Stacey & Timothy Biblarz, (How) Does the Sexual Orientation of Parents Matter?, 66 AMER. SOC. REV. 159, 176 (2001). There are, in fact, studies that show that there are particular advantages for children with two lesbian mothers, id. at p. 174, and that gay fathers are no different than heterosexual fathers "in providing appropriate recreation, encouraging autonomy, or dealing with general problems of parenting." Perrin, supra; see also CHARLOTTE J. PATTERSON, GAY FATHERS, IN THE ROLE OF THE FATHER IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 397, 412 (Michael E. Lamb ed., 4th ed., 2004) ("[T]here is no reason for concern about the development of children living in the custody of gay fathers; on the contrary, there is every reason to believe that gay fathers are as likely as heterosexual fathers to provide home environments in which children grow and flourish."). Where both same-sex parents participate in the child's upbringing, the child will form a significant attachment relationship with each parent. A study evaluating child development in lesbian families found that: both women in the lesbian mother family were actively engaged in child care and a strong mutual attachment had been developed between [the non-biological] mother and the child. It seems therefore at odds with reality to consider a lesbian household as a single mother family unit. 18 A. Brewaeys, et al., Donor Insemination: Child Development and Family Functioning in Lesbian Mother Families 12 HUMAN REPRODUCTION 1349, 1356 (1997). Likewise, a clinical evaluation of preschool children of lesbian couples determined that when both women in the relationship care for a child, the child becomes attached to both. BARBARA M. MCCANDLISH, AGAINST ALL ODDS: LESBIAN MOTHER FAMILY DYNAMICS, IN GAY AND LESBIAN PARENTS 23-38 (Frederick W. Bozett ed., 1987). As with heterosexual parent relationships, the fact that Jacob is not biologically linked to Boseman does not affect his attachment relationship. See Brewaeys, supra, at 1354 ("[A]mong the lesbian mothers, the quality of the parent-child interaction [does] not differ significantly between the biological and the [non-biological] mother."); Susan Golombok et al., The European Study of Assisted Reproduction Families: Family Functioning and Child Development, 11 HUMAN REPRODUCTION 2324, 2330 (1996) (finding that the lack of a genetic link between one or both same-sex parents and the child did not have negative consequences for parent-child relationships). Indeed, here, the lower court made extensive factual findings demonstrating the strong parental attachment between Jacob and Appellee. See R. p. 253- 54. Appellant herself "readily admits that [Boseman] is a very good parent who loves Jacob and Jacob loves her." R. p. 254 ¶ 35. 19 iv. Children Experience Severe Emotional and Psychological Harm when their Attachment Relationships are Severed Continuity of the parent-child attachment relationship is essential to a child's healthy development and overall well-being. Goldstein, supra, at 31 -33; see Marty, supra, at 274 ("[T]he quality of the attachment has profound effects on the child's social adjustment."); Am. Acad. of Pediatrics: Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, supra, at 1145 ("Paramount in the lives of . . . children is their need for continuity with their primary attachment figures."); Nat'l Research Council and Inst. of Med., supra, at 265; John Bowlby, Attachment and Loss: Retrospect and Prospect, 52 AM. J. ORTHOPSYCHIATRY 664, 665-66 (1982). Numerous empirical findings "provide a solid research basis for predictions of long term harm associated with disrupted attachment [relationships]." Frank J. Dyer, Termination of Parental Rights in Light of Attachment Theory: The Case of Kaylee, 10 PSYCHOL. PUB. POL'Y & L. 5, 11 (2004); see also Am. Acad. of Pediatrics: Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, supra, 15 at 1146 ("Interruptions in the continuity of a child's caregiver are often detrimental"); Joan B. Kelly & Michael E. Lamb, Using Child Development Research to Make Appropriate Custody and Access Decisions for Young Children, 38 FAMILY & 20 CONCILIATION COURTS REV. 297, 303 (2000) (explaining that "relationships with parents play a crucial role in shaping children's social, emotional, personal, and cognitive development, and there is a substantial literature documenting the adverse effects of disrupted parent-child relationships on children's development and adjustment"). When a child's attachment relationship with a parent has been forcibly severed, the psychological impact on the child can be astounding. Young children typically have operated on the assumption that they could depend on the predictable availability of both parents. When that assumption proves incorrect, a child may question many other assumptions about the world; for example, whether he or she can count on the availability of any parent. Such concerns lead to insecure or avoidant attachment, interference with healthy object relations, and reorganization of cognitive understandings. The egocentrism of young children may lead them to conclude that a parent's absence is due to their own unlovability. Thus, abandonment by a noncustodial parent is a particularly devastating experience. WILLIAM HODGES, INTERVENTIONS OF CHILDREN OF DIVORCE: CUSTODY, ACCESS, AND PSYCHOTHERAPY 8-9 (2d. ed., 1991); see also Rayford W. Thweatt, Divorce: Crisis Intervention Guided By Attachment Theory, 34 AM. J. OF PSYCHOTHERAPY 240, 241 (1980) (explaining that upon separation from an attachment figure, children experience "a predictable sequence of behavior with four phases: denial, protest, despair, and detachment"). 21 For example, interference with children's attachment relationships can lead to "aggression, fearful relationships, academic problems in school, and...elevated psychopathology." Marty, supra, at 274; see also Byrne, supra, at 118 ("[T]hreats to or disruptions in the attachment relationships...lead to fear/anxiety."); Nat'l Research Council and Inst. of Medicine, supra, at 265 ("[A]ttachments buffer young children against the development of serious behavior problems, in part by strengthening the human connections and providing the structure and monitoring that curb violent or aggressive tendencies."). The research demonstrates that the "extreme distress" experienced by a child upon termination of an attachment figure's regular and customary role as a parent will occur even where there is no biological connection between them. See FIONA L. TASKER & SUSAN GOLOMBOK, GROWING UP IN A LESBIAN FAMILY: EFFECTS ON CHILD DEVELOPMENT 12 (Guilford Press 1997); Yvon Gauthier et al., Clinical Application of Attachment Theory in Permanency Planning for Children in Foster Care: The Importance of Continuity of Care, 25 INFANT MENTAL HEALTH J. 379, 394 (2004) 22 (explaining that children suffer greatly when separated from non-biological parent figures).9 Specific research on children in lesbian households demonstrates the same need for continuity, and resulting harm from disruption of attachment relationships, as that manifested in children of heterosexual parents. See, e.g., Tasker, supra, at 12 (twenty-year longitudinal study in the United Kingdom which found that cessation of the parent-child bond between a child and a lesbian non-biological parent "can cause the [child] extreme distress"). Researchers have found that, when lesbian couples separate, the children mourn for the absent caretaker just as they would for an absent biological or married parent after separation. See Martha Kirkpatrick et al., Lesbian Mothers and Their Children: A Comparative Study, 51 AM. J. ORTHOPSYCHIATRY 545, 547-51 (1981). By every measure, adoptions by a second parent benefit children by making them safer, more secure, more protected, and less vulnerable to the deleterious consequences of the loss of a parent to whom the children have become emotionally and psychologically attached. The best interest of 9 See also Melissa Holtzman, Definitions of the Family as an Impetus for Legal Change in Custody Decision Making: Suggestions from an Empirical Case Study, 31 LAW & SOCIAL INQUIRY 1, 2-3 (2006) ("[W]here nonbiological attachments already exist, it is not to the child's benefit to sever either those ties or the biological ties in order to satisfy the demands of exclusive parenthood."). 23 Jacob, the child who is at the heart of this case, requires that the final adoption order granting him a second legal parent continues to be upheld. II. OTHER STATES WITH LAWS SIMILAR TO NORTH CAROLINA'S HAVE RECOGNIZED THAT IT IS IN A CHILD'S BEST INTEREST TO UPHOLD AN ADOPTION BY A SECOND PARENT. As discussed above, social science research overwhelmingly shows that it is in the best interest of children to protect and maintain their established attachment relationships. It is critical to children's development, psychological health, and general well-being to foster and promote, rather than sever, parental attachments, whether or not the parent is biologically related, and whether or not the parents are same-sex or heterosexual. Consistent with the research cited above, courts from sister jurisdictions construing similar adoption laws have found that it is in a child's best interest to allow a parent to provide his or her child with a second legal parent through adoption. A. Courts Construe Adoption Statutes According to Legislative Mandates to Provide for Children's Best Interest. With the overwhelming amount of social science research, experts and organizations concluding that adoptions by second parents are in children's best interest, other courts faced with the question of whether to allow parents access to the adoption process to provide their children with a second legal 24 parent have first recognized that adoption laws are purely statutory and that the rule of strict statutory construction generally applies. However, in case after case, these courts also recognized that the strict construction rule is applied first to the legislative mandate that the provisions be construed liberally to effect each of the adoption law's primary purpose of protecting and providing for the welfare of children. For example, the court in In re Jacob, 86 N.Y.2d 651, 660 N.E.2d 397 (N.Y. 1995), recognized that adoption was "solely the creature of …statute" and that "in strictly construing the adoption statute, our primary loyalty must be to the statute's legislative purpose--the child's best interest." Id. at 399; see also, In re Adoption of Two Children by H.N.R., 666 A.2d 535, 538 (N.J. App. Div. 1995); Sharon S. v. Superior Court, 31 Cal.4th 417, 73 P.3d 554, 560 (2003); In re K.M., 271 Ill. App. 3d 189, 200, 653 N.E.2d 888, 896 (1995) ("Liberal construction, focused on the best interests of the children, is what the statute calls for, even in the area of standing"). As have sister courts in states with similar adoption statutes, this Court should follow the express legislative directive to liberally construe the adoption act to satisfy its primary purpose – the best interest of children. See In re Adoption of Clark, 327 N.C. 61, 710 n.1, 393 S.E.2d 791, 796 (1990) ("the trial court erroneously stated that the adoption statute was to be strictly 25 construed. The statute prescribes that it is to be liberally construed in favor of the child and in favor of the stability of the child in its adoptive home.") (Whichard, J., dissenting).10 B. Courts Have Found No Legitimate State Interests Supporting Denial of a Parent's Ability to Provide His or Her Child with a Second Legal Parent and Ample State Interest Supporting Such Adoptions. Many courts faced with the question before this Court have found, consistent with the conclusions of all major child welfare organizations, psychiatric, psychological, medical and adoption organizations and experts,11 that no countervailing public interest is served in denying a child a legal relationship with his or her functional co-parent. See e.g., In re Jacob, supra, 660 N.E.2d at 399 ("This [best interest of the child] policy would certainly be advanced in situations like those presented here by allowing the two adults who actually function as a child's parents to become the child's legal parents"); In re Adoption of K.S.P., 804 N.E.2d 1253, 1256, 1260 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004) ("[a]llowing a second parent to share legal responsibility for 10 See also Adoptions of B.L.V.B. and E.L.V.B., 160 Vt. 368, 371, 628 A.2d, 1271, 1273 (1993) ("the state's primary concern is to promote the welfare of children."). Accord In re Jacob, 86 N.Y.2d 651, 657-8, 660 N.E. 397, 399 (1995); In re Adoption of K.S.P., 804 N.E.2d 1253, 1260 (2004); Adoption of Tammy, 416 Mass. 205, 213-14, 619 N.E.315, 320 (1993); In re Petition of K.M. and D.M., 274 Ill. App. 3d 189, 199, 653 N.E.2d 888, 895 (1995); In re M.M.D & B.H.M., 662 A.2d 837, 861 (D.C. 1995). 11 See FN8, supra. 26 the financial, spiritual, educational, and emotional well-being of the child in a stable, supportive, and nurturing environment can only be in the best interest of that child") (citations omitted); Adoption of Tammy, supra, 619 N.E.2d at 320 (setting out the myriad ways in which providing the child with a second parent through adoption would benefit the child); In re M.M.D., supra, 662 A.2d 837, 861 (D.C. 1995) (rejecting a construction of the statute that "would produce the unreasonable and irrational result of defeating adoptions that are otherwise indisputably in the best interests of children"); Sharon S., supra, 73 P.3d at 568-69 (noting that children's best interest are served by providing a "clear legal framework for resolving any disputes that may arise over custody and visitation" and that "explicitly recognizing [second parent adoption's] validity will prevent uncertainty, conflict, and protracted litigation in this area, all of which plainly are harmful to children caught in the middle"). The reasoning of the court in Adoptions of B.L.V.B. and E.L.V.B., 160 Vt. 368, 628 A.2d 1271 (1993) is particularly instructive here: We are not called upon to approve or disapprove of the relationship between the appellants. Whether we do or not, the fact remains that Deborah has acted as a parent of B.L.V.B. and E.L.V.B. from the moment they were born. To deny legal protection of their relationship, as a matter of law, is inconsistent with the children's best interests and therefore with the public policy of this state, as expressed in our statutes 27 affecting children. 628 A.2d at 1276. Finally, many courts have recognized, as did the court in B.L.V.B., that "[t]o deny the children of same-sex partners, as a class, the security of a legally recognized relationship with their second parent serves no legitimate state interest." 628 A.2d at 1275. See also H.N.R., supra, 666 A.2d at 541; In re Hart, 806 A.2d 1179, 1184 (Del. Fam. Ct. 2001) (citing the "benefit that would not otherwise accrue to society and to the effected children if the statute were read restrictively"); Sharon S., supra, 73 P.3d at 569 ("second parent adoptions offer the possibility of obtaining the security and advantages of two parents for some of California's neediest children"). Application of the sound and thorough reasoning applied by sister courts here leads to but one result: upholding the adoption of Jacob, requested and consented to by Jarrell, and maintaining the parent-child relationship between Jacob and his adoptive parent that has been firmly established for nearly eight years. C. Courts Recognize Their Obligations to Apply Adoption Law to Reflect the Reality of Children's Lives and to Avoid Absurd and Unjust Results. Amici strongly encourage this Court to focus on the needs of the child at the center of this controversy and the reality of young Jacob's life. As 28 many other courts have recognized and as adoption organizations interested in children's welfare urge, a court's "paramount concern should be with the effect of our laws on the reality of children's lives." Adoptions of B.L.V.B., supra, 628 A.2d. at 1276 (quoted by In re Adoption of Two Children by H.N.R., supra, 666 A.2d at 540); see also H.N.R. at 541. Recognizing this primary concern, and applying it with blinders as to the parents' sexual orientation as this Court must12, there can be no outcome other than to uphold the adoption between Boseman and the child she has co-parented since his birth and who he has known his entire life as one of his two parents. See, e.g., In re Adoption of K.S.P., supra, 804 N.E.2d at 1260 ("Polchert has acted as an involved parent to the children for a greater part of their young lives. While our resolution of the instant case one way or the other will not change this everyday reality, many possible benefits and legal entitlements for the children do hang in the balance."). The record below provides ample evidence, and it is not disputed, that 12 Children, of course, have no control over the composition of the family into which they are adopted, or whether their adoptive second parent happens to be of the same sex or different sex than their biological parent. The United States Supreme Court has made clear that it is improper to penalize children for the actions or the legal status of their parents. See Trimble v. Gordon, 430 U.S. 762, 770 (1977) (in striking down inheritance law that discriminated against illegitimate children, noting "Obviously, no child is responsible for his birth and penalizing the illegitimate child is an ineffectual as well - as an unjust - way of deterring the parent."). 29 there a parent-child relationship and a close emotional bond exist between Boseman and Jacob. This evidence, along with the legislative mandate to place the best interest of the child above all else where nonwaivable statutory prerequisites such as notice and consent13 are met, should lead this Court to uphold the validity of Jacob's adoption. Here again, this Court can look to the unassailable reasoning of many other courts faced with the situation before it and "avoid results that are irrational, unreasonable or absurd." Adoption of B.L.V.B., supra, 628 A.2d. at 1273;14 see also In re Adoption of R.B.F., 569 Pa. 269, 281, 803 A.2d 1195, 1202 (2002) ("a contrary interpretation of the 'cause shown' language would command an absurd result as the Adoption Act does not expressly preclude same-sex partners from adopting."). Where strict application of an adoption provision would preclude an unmarried parent from providing for his or her child with a second legal parent, courts consistently conclude that such a result is untenable with the statute's over-arching purpose of promoting the best interest of children. In re K.S.P., supra, 804 N.E.2d at 13 See N.C. GEN. STAT. §§ 48-3-601, 48-3-602. 14 see also King v. Baldwin, 276 N.C. 316, 325, 172 S.E.2d 12, 19 (1970) ("It is presumed that the legislature acted in accordance with reason and common sense and that it did not intend an unjust or absurd result; and, in construing a statute, the court always looks to its purpose.") (citing State v. Humphries, 210 N.C. 406, 186 S.E. 473 (1936); Ikerd v. R. R., 209 N.C. 270, 183 S.E. 402 (1936); 82 C. J. S. STATUTES §§ 316, 323, 325, 344 (1953)). 30 1257 ("A strict literal reading of these two statutes would seem to support the trial court's determination that if it were to grant Polchert's petition for adoption, Mother's parental rights to her children would be divested, a consequence clearly unintended by the couple. In light of the purpose and spirit of Indiana's adoption laws, we conclude that the legislature could not have intended such a destructive and absurd result."). Severing Jacob's legal ties to Boseman is wholly inconsistent with the Court's obligation to interpret and apply the adoption laws with children's best interest at heart. Here, as in In the Interest of Hart, supra: For the Court to ignore what exists in fact in the best interests of children would ignore logic; be antithetical to the needs and bests interest of children who are being cared for, raised and nurtured in a home where two adults are committed and dedicated to their welfare; and produce an absurd and unacceptable social result. 806 A.2d at 1186, Consistent with the social science, courts have respected the finality of an adoption order by a same-sex parent by recognizing that "[t]he destruction of a parent-child relationship is a traumatic experience that can lead to emotional devastation for all the parties involved, and all reasonable efforts to prevent this outcome must be invoked when there is no indication that the destruction of the existing parent-child relationship is in the best 31 interest of the child." Goodson v. Castellanos, 214 S.W.3d 741, 749 (Tex. App. 2007). Similarly, recognition of the primacy of the child's interests has led numerous courts to recognize second parent adoptions even where state adoption statutes are silent as to their validity. In re Hart, supra, 806 A.2d at 1185 ("Although the Delaware General Assembly may not have specifically contemplated adoption by a 'second parent' when enacting the adoption laws of this State, it is inconceivable to conclude, given the statutory mandate to read the statute in best interest of children, that our Legislature would have meant to exclude loving and nurturing two parent homes as a resource for some of the states most needy children."); In re Jacob, 660 N.E.2d at 405 (While the Legislature may not have envisioned adoption by same-sex partners, there is no indication that it attempted to define all possible categories of persons leading to adoptions in the best interests of children.). Although the North Carolina legislature likewise may not have contemplated a provision that allows an unmarried parent who is co-parenting with another person to provide their child with a second legal parent, this Court may, indeed, must interpret the adoption laws to effectuate their primary purpose of protecting the children that come before the courts. In sum, decades of social science research confirm that it is in the best interest of children to protect and maintain their established attachment 32 relationships, and the Court of Appeals and the two lower courts in this case correctly concluded that it was in the best interest of Jacob that both Appellee and Appellant be recognized as his legal parents. A result to the contrary would be inconsistent with North Carolina's adoption statutes and strong public policy prioritizing the interests of children above all. And, as the social science also demonstrates, the consequences of severing Jacob's parent-child relationship with Appellee—a consideration remarkably absent from Appellant's brief—would be harmful, if not devastating. 33 CONCLUSION For the reasons above, the lower courts' orders respecting the finality of the adoption order and granting joint custody of Jacob to Appellant and Appellee should be affirmed. Respectfully submitted this the ___ day of March, 2010. GAILOR WALLIS & HUNT PLLC By: __________________________ Cathy C. Hunt N.C. State Bar I.D. No. 20326 1101 Haynes Street, Suite 201 Raleigh, NC 27604 Telephone: (919) 832-8488 Facsimile: (919) 832-8283 email@example.com Attorney for Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, National Center for Adoption Law and Policy, Barton Child Law & Policy Center, Professors Katharine T. Bartlett, Naomi Cahn, June Carbone, Maxine Eichner, Joan Heifetz Hollinger, and Barbara Woodhouse 34
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Agapanthus are easy to propagate by division. Divide between spring and early summer, or in early autumn, after plants have finished flowering. Avoid splitting plants too often as this will reduce flowering. Large clumps should only be split every four to six years.
Type: Hardy Perennial
Flowering period: July- August
Height and spread: 90 x 45 cm
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Cheap Mother's Day Gifts
70 Thrifty Gifts Any Mom Would Love
by Emily Co
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70 Thrifty Gifts Any Mom Would Love
Being a mom is the hardest job of all, and it's tough to find a Mother's Day gift that will reflect your appreciation. What it comes down to is how much thought you put into the gift. So what are you gonna get your best cheerleader? Read on for some suggestions.
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I love these ideas! My mom would love the bath salts, I'll being trying that DIY out for sure!
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2011-12 Award Winners
Calgary, AB - The Western Hockey League announced the 2011-12 winners of the annual WHL Awards presented Wednesday, May 2nd at the WHL Awards Luncheon held in Calgary, Alberta.
WHL Player of the Year, Four Broncos Memorial Trophy
Brendan Shinnimin (Winnipeg, MB), Tri-City Americans
Shinnimin, a Winnipeg, MB, native, enjoyed an excellent season for the Americans, recording 58 goals and 76 assists for 134 points along with a +45 rating in 69 games and capturing the Bob Clarke trophy as the WHL's top regular-season scorer as the Ams won the U.S. Division and Western Conference regular-season titles. Shinnimin's 134 points marks the highest point total for a WHL player since the 1998-99 season. The 5'10", 175-lb pivot finished second among all WHL players with 58 goals and third among WHL players with 76 assists. Additionally, Shinnimin finished second in the WHL with 21 power play markers and second with seven shorthanded tallies. His nine game-winning goals tied him for third among all WHL players, while his +45 rating tied him for the WHL lead in that category. Shinnimin maintained consistent production throughout the season, recording at least one point in 60 of 69 games he played, and enjoyed point streaks of at least 13 games on two different occasions, including ending the regular season on a 23-game point streak. Shinnimin was named the Husky WHL Player of the Month for February after piling up an astounding 23 goals and 43 points in just 14 games.
Emerson Etem (Long Beach, CA), Medicine Hat Tigers
WHL Rookie of the Year, Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy
Sam Reinhart (Vancouver, BC), Kootenay Ice
The youngest of the three Reinhart boys, Sam enjoyed a terrific first season in the WHL with the Kootenay Ice. Playing alongside his oldest brother, Max, the Vancouver, B.C., product scored 28 goals and 34 assists for 62 points in 67 games for the Ice this season, putting him behind only his brother in team scoring. His 28 goals tied for the Ice lead, and were the most by any 16-year-old rookie in the WHL, while his 62 points put him fourth among all WHL rookies in that category. In addition, Reinhart scored five game-winning goals and enjoyed 15 multiple-point outings during the season. Kootenay's first-round pick, 15th overall, in the 2010 WHL Bantam Draft, Sam played four regular-season games for the Ice last season and got into seven post-season games as the Ice captured the 2011 WHL Championship. Reinhart is eligible for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
Tim Bozon (Cureglia, SUI), Kamloops Blazers
WHL Goaltender of the Year, Del Wilson Trophy
Tyler Bunz (St. Albert, AB), Medicine Hat Tigers
Bunz enjoyed his best season in the WHL over his four-year career with the Medicine Hat Tigers, helping the team make the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season. The 20-year-old from St. Albert, AB, appeared in a career-high 61 games for the Tigers, posting a 39-17-5 record with three shutouts to go with a 2.57 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage as the Tigers finished in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Bunz finished third among all WHL goaltenders in wins, second in save percentage, fifth in GAA, and tied for sixth in shutouts. He was also selected among the 3 Stars in a game 27 times, including 10 1st Star selections. His best month came in February when he posted a perfect 7-0 record with a 1.86 GAA and a .941 save percentage and was named the Vaughn WHL Goaltender of the Month. Bunz was the Tigers' first-round pick, 21st overall, in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft, and is an Edmonton Oilers prospect.
Ty Rimmer (Edmonton, AB), Tri-City Americans
WHL Defenceman of the Year, Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy
Alex Petrovic (Edmonton, AB), Red Deer Rebels
Petrovic turned in an outstanding season on the blue line for the Red Deer Rebels, despite the Rebels not making the WHL playoffs. The 21-year-old from Edmonton, AB, finished third on the team and 15th among all WHL defensemen in scoring with 48 points, including a career-high 12 goals, in 68 games this season, and helped hold together a Rebels' blue line that was decimated by injuries over the course of the season. Named to the WHL Eastern Conference First All-Star team, Petrovic ate up a large amount of minutes for the Rebels, playing in all situations, and often matched up against the opposition's best line. Petrovic was the Rebels' second-round pick, 33rd overall, in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft, and has played 270 regular-season games over five seasons for the team. He is a Florida Panthers prospect.
Brenden Kichton (Spruce Grove, AB), Spokane Chiefs
WHL Most Sportsmanlike Player, Brad Hornung Trophy
Mark Stone (Winnipeg, MB), Brandon Wheat Kings
The WHL's second-leading scorer this season, Mark Stone is also the WHL Eastern Conference nominee for the Most Sportsmanlike Player award. The 19-year-old from Winnipeg, MB, netted a career-high 41 goals and 82 assists for 123 points this season while drawing just 22 minutes in penalties in 66 games. Stone, a WHL Eastern Conference First Team All-Star, drew minor penalties in just 10 of the 66 games he played and picked up more than one minor infraction in a single game just once all season, despite playing heavy minutes for the Wheat Kings. A gifted and competitive offensive player, Stone is respected for his scoring abilities as well as his on-ice demeanor. A fifth-round pick of the Wheat Kings in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft, Stone is a prospect of the NHL's Ottawa Senators.
Ryan Murray (White City, SK), Everett Silvertips
WHL Scholastic Player of the Year, Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Memorial Trophy
Reid Gow (Killarney, MB), Spokane Chiefs
Reid Gow made an impact on the ice for the Spokane Chiefs, and was a star in the classroom during the 2011-12 school year. The 17-year-old from Killarney, MB, completed the first semester of his Grade 12 year with a 95.3% cumulative average at Joel E. Ferris High School in Spokane, WA, including finishing with a perfect 100% in Sports Marketing. Singled out as a top student under any circumstances by his instructors, Gow's scholastic achievements have been considered extraordinary considering the time constraints he faces as a WHL player. Gow is also currently enrolled in an online course through Athabasca University, and is also still enrolled at Ferris High School. On the Ice, Gow put up two goals and 20 points in 54 games on the blue line for the Chiefs, helping them make the playoffs for as sixth straight year.
Jimmy Bubnick (Saskatoon, SK), Calgary Hitmen
WHL Coach of the Year, Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy
Jim Hiller, Tri-City Americans
In his third season as head coach of the Tri-City Americans, Jim Hiller guided the Ams to yet another outstanding regular-season campaign. Under Hiller, the Ams posted a 50-18-2-2 record for 104 points to capture their fourth U.S. Division title in five seasons and finish with the best record in the WHL Western Conference. Hiller's Americans boasted the WHL's fourth-ranked offense and the top-ranked defense, and scored 91 more goals than they allowed this season. In addition, Hiller's Americans owned the WHL's seventh-ranked power play and the top-ranked penalty killing unit. In three seasons as head coach of the Americans, Hiller has piled up a coaching record of 147-64-5-6 for a .678 winning percentage in that time.
Pat Conacher, Regina Pats
WHL Executive of the Year, Lloyd Saunders Memorial Trophy
Bob Green, Edmonton Oil Kings
Bob Green has been the architect of the Edmonton Oil Kings since they joined the WHL for the 2007-08 WHL season. During the 2011-12 season, Green's fifth campaign as general manager, the Oil Kings skated to the best record in the WHL with a 50-15-3-4 mark for 107 points, capturing the Scotty Munro Memorial trophy. The Oil Kings' roster features 16 players who were selected by Green and his staff through the WHL Bantam Draft and another two who were chosen through the CHL Import draft. Eight of the team's top 10 scorers were drafted by Green. In addition, Green bolstered his roster with key acquisitions such as Tyler Maxwell and Jordan Peddle. Having put together a talented and exciting team, the Oil Kings saw a 24.6% increase in their attendance during the regular season.
Craig Bonner, Kamloops Blazers
WHL Humanitarian of the Year, Doug Wickenheiser Memorial Trophy
Taylor Vause (Calgary, AB), Swift Current Broncos
The captain of the Swift Current Broncos, Taylor Vause was a star on the ice for the Broncos, and devoted countless hours to the town of Swift Current and surrounding communities. The Calgary, AB, product has involved himself in several charity initiatives, spent plenty of time visiting schools, reading to students and promoting the importance of education, and has been recognized as a Youth Leader in the community by the Swift Current and region Drug Task Force. As a young man living with Type 1 diabetes, Taylor has been a vocal spokesperson to help create awareness and raise funds for a cure for the disease. He is a prime example of someone who never let an obstacle get in the way of chasing his dream. Taylor even took the time to design special jerseys to commemorate the Four Broncos, which were worn by the team and auctioned off with proceeds going to the Broncos Education Fund.
Brendan Gallagher (Delta, BC), Vancouver Giants
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[June 29, 2012]
Tech Awards Circle Names Winners of Its 4th Annual Competition
Jun 29, 2012 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) -- Tech Awards Circle, an independent awards program, announced the winners of its fourth annual competition.
According to a release, the winners represent a range of product achievements, from hardware to software in consumer/SOHO, SMB, midrange and enterprise markets. Tech Awards Circle also honors talented executive leadership and engineering innovators.
Tech Awards Circle winners, selected by an independent circle of journalists, should be considered the 'best of the best' in the computer and consumer technology industries today. Gold, silver and bronze awards were given out in each category. Winners are listed below.
Gold Winners: -Texas Memory Systems RamSan-720 - Best Enterprise Hardware -QuorumLabs onQ Site Recovery Appliance - Best SMB Software -Samsung Series 9 - Best Consumer/SOHO Software -Arkeia vmOneStep - Best Midrange Software -TrustSphere LogiQ - Best Enterprise Software -Fran Rosch, VP of Identity and Authentication at Symantec - Executive of the Year -Donald Basile, CEO of Violin - Emerging Companies Executive of the Year -Lars Oleson, Executive Director of Product Engineering at iolo technologies - Technologist of the Year at a Mid-Size Company Silver Winners: -Violin 6000 Series Flash Memory Array - Best Enterprise Hardware -Avere Systems Edge Filer - Best Enterprise Hardware -WebPT - Best SMB Software -Nevex CacheWorks and Citrix VDI-in-a-Box (tie)- Best Midrange Software -Acquisio Platform - Best Enterprise Software -Eric Melka, CEO at Redline Communications - Executive of the Year -John Schroeder, CEO at MapR - Emerging Companies Executive of the Year Bronze Winners: -MuleSoft Mule iON - Best SMB Software -Bocada Vision - Best Midrange Software -Serena Service Manager - Best Enterprise Software -Brad Wurtz, President and CEO at Power Assure - Emerging Companies Executive of the Year "Unlike with other award competitions that can be highly influenced by advertising dollars or the purchase of a table at an overpriced banquet dinner, Tech Awards Circle winners can be confident that their companies' honored products and executives are truly the best in the industry," said Kevin Anderson, awards program coordinator. "This year's select group of gold, silver and bronze winners represent a wide assortment of established players and emerging vendors. We applaud their efforts and congratulate them on their very well-deserved wins." More information: www.techawardscircle.com ((Comments on this story may be sent to firstname.lastname@example.com))
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A HUGE Weekend Recap! All Star Game preview week!
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Lets Get Small w/Curry and Westbrook / 2015 NBA All-Star Game: INthePAINT
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Love is in the air on All Star Saturday!
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Hey welcome Ladies and Gentelmen to your favorite sports radio show! I know today is a day that love is in the air and that's why you need to get your sports fix in with me before all the festivities start! It should be another fun show as I break down NBA All Star Weekend! We've already had a good Celebrity Basketball game and a competitve Rising Stars Game. Can the 3 point shootout and Dunk Championship measure up? I'll discuss all this and more on "The Jay Byrd Show!" Tune in now!
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Join the POH crew today as we discuss the events of All-Star weekend, including our opinions on the dunk and 3 point contests, as well as our thoughts of the All Star game itself. With the second half of the season slated to begin, we will be getting into who we think are the pretender and contenders in each conference of the NBA. Who are the teams most likely to go all the way and win it all? You'll only find out by tuning in!
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Hey Welcome back to the best sports radio show in the country. We had a great All Star weekend in the NBA and I'll give you all my latest opinions on what happened. Kobe sat down and did an interview and I'll discuss that, MJ's birthday and the a new edition to the Dallas Mavericks. Once again get strapped into your seats and let's get ready to rumble on "The Jay Byrd Sports Show!"
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Welcome to Dead End Sports...the place where sports opinions collide!!! Dead End Sports is weekly sports show that can be heard every Tuesday night from 9pm-11pm EST. We are the best sports talk show on the internet! We rarely agree!
On this week's episode we'll talk about...NBA All Star Weekend, Celebrity Game, 3 Point Shootout, Slam Dunk Contest, top 5 Slam Dunk contest winners, Jackie Robinson West being stripped of their Little League World Series title, Kevin Durant vs the media, the NBA trade deadline...and much more!!!
WATCH and SUBSCRIBE to our youtube channel (www.youtube.com/deadendsports). Check out our website deadendsports.com . Follow the show on twitter: @deadendsports as well as the Dead End Sports crew...Feefo - @feefo247 , Beezy - @beezy430 , Ken - @kbinge , & 12kyle - @12kyle
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CEO, RAPP Asia
Siraj has become synonymous with building, managing, and driving momentum of new brands and businesses. With more than 19 years experience, he is one of Asia's foremost marketing communications professionals in brand planning, data, digital, and CRM. As CEO for RAPP Asia, he is responsible for revitalizing, repositioning, and growing the world's leading data driven marketing company across 12 offices from India to Japan. Siraj believes data is the key to insights driven marketing. In its true form, data driven marketing presents marketers a medium to be highly responsive, offering enriching experiences to consumers. It provides the opportunity for experimentation, and allows brands to participate in an interactive way with users, creating their own content. Siraj currently makes his home in Singapore and travels extensively to meet the needs of his clients and to explore business opportunities in every corner of Asia. He has lived and worked in many Asian cities ? Bangalore, Muscat, Jakarta, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur.
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A Buyer's Guide to Affiliate Management Software
Manage your performance marketing with the right solution. Choose a platform that will mutually empower advertisers and media partners!
Google My Business Listings Demystified
To help brands control how they appear online, Google has developed a new offering: Google My Business Locations. This whitepaper helps marketers understand how to use this powerful new tool.
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Young Living
Create a Harmonious Atmosphere this Holiday Season
The most impactful and influential relationships in most people's lives are with family members. And, for better or for worse, our family is most likely to see us at our best…and our worst. Here are a few ideas for creating an atmosphere of joy and cooperation that will keep things harmonious throughout the holidays!
Use your favorite Young Living diffuser, such as the AromaLux™ or Bamboo™ diffusers, and try the following suggestions:
- Enhance a warm, festive, and inviting atmosphere in your home with traditional scents of the season such as Christmas Spirit™ or Evergreen Essence™.
- Combine Frereana Frankincense and Idaho Balsam Fir for a woodsy and reverent ambiance.
- Take a deep breath and enhance a feeling of togetherness by diffusing Harmony™, Forgiveness™, Humility™, or Present Time™ during your next family gathering. Bring it up a notch by adding Believe™, Hope™, Inspiration™, Joy™, or Transformation™.
- Create a calming, meditative mood by diffusing your own blend of Pine, Royal Hawaiian Sandalwood, and Hong Kuai.
What blends do you diffuse during the holidays to enhance your sense of peace, harmony, and togetherness throughout the season? Share your comments below!
—Heidi Jeanfreau, Young Living International and Portfolio Brand Manager
Relieving Stress with Essential Oils—Part II
Relax. It's good for you; you deserve it; and it takes less time than you think! The key to managing daily stress is to learn healthy coping strategies. In this, the second part of my Relieving Stress series, I'll share more ideas for quick, simple ways to relax your mind and body.
Straighten Up
Taking a minute to organize and straighten your home or work environment will do a world of good to remove mentally distracting clutter. A simple and organized space will allow you to focus more fully on the task at hand.
Take a Short Walk
If you need a break during work, take a short walk outside. Breathing fresh air and enjoying some sunshine will get your circulation flowing and refresh and stretch your muscles.
If you're like me, free time is an extravagance that you don't enjoy frequently. However, just three minutes of meditation can calm your mind and help create a more peaceful and manageable day. To take your meditation to the next level, diffuse or apply a few drops of the following essential oils topically to your temples, the nape of your neck, your heart, or the soles of your feet while meditating:
- Hong Kuai, Hinoki, Frankincense, Sacred Frankincense™, Idaho Balsam Fir, Juniper, or Pine can help increase spiritual awareness.
- Ylang Ylang helps control negative feelings.
- Inspiration™ enhances spirituality and meditation.
- Jasmine boosts self-confidence and promotes a positive outlook.
- Palo Santo helps ward off negative emotions.
- Myrtle promotes uplifting emotions.
- Lemon Myrtle clears the mind.
- Humility™ promotes deeper spiritual and emotional awareness.
- Awaken™ heightens awareness of your limitless potential.
- Present Time™ sharpens your focus on the here and now.
- Believe™ encourages feelings of strength and faith.
- Abundance™ attracts prosperity and magnifies joy and peace.
- Release™ facilitates the release of anger and frustration and promotes harmony and balance.
- Transformation™ empowers you to replace negative beliefs with uplifting thoughts.
Leave a comment and let me know some of your methods for reducing stress in your day!
—Heidi Jeanfreau, YL International and Portfolio Brand Manager