Adoption of Tammy
Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
619 N.E.2d 315 (1993)
Susan and Helen (plaintiffs), a long-term same-sex couple, had a daughter, Tammy, conceived through artificial insemination using sperm from Helen's cousin, who consented to the adoption and sought no parental role. Both women had jointly and equally raised Tammy since birth, and numerous family members and court-appointed advocates supported the adoption. The Probate and Family Court granted the joint adoption petition but reported the case for review given the novel legal question, and the state's highest court took it up directly.
Whether Massachusetts adoption law, in a state that did not permit same-sex marriage, allows a child's biological mother and her same-sex partner to jointly adopt the child.