UK Law and Practice Contributed by: Emma Post and Nicki Beale, NE Family Law
tion order is made, Section 46 (1) of the Adoption and Children Act 2002 confers PR. Furthermore: • a child must be under the age of 18 when an adop - tion application is made; • an adoption order cannot be made if the child reaches the age of 19 or if that person is or has been married/a civil partner; • one or both members of the couple needs to have a fixed and permanent home (ie, be domiciled) in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man; and • both must have lived (ie, have been habitually resi- dent) in the UK for at least one year before com - mencing the adoption application. Step-Parents A step-parent does not automatically acquire PR by virtue of marriage or civil partnership. Step-parents (meaning only spouses and civil part - ners) can acquire PR for the children of their spouse/ civil partner by the following means. • Agreement with the child’s parents by way of a PR order. This would need to be with the consent of: (a) both the child’s mother and father if both have PR; or (b) the child’s mother, if only she has PR. • By applying to the court for either a PR order or a child arrangements order, for a child they are car - ing for to live with them. • Becoming a legal guardian by way of step-parent For same-sex female couples, how both partners can obtain PR depends on their relationship status and how the child was conceived. Automatic PR This is obtained as follows: • birth mother – automatic PR. • married or civil partners at conception (Section 42 Human Embryology and Fertilisation Act 2008) – if the couple are married or in a civil partnership adoption or special guardianship. Same-Sex Female Relationships
at the time of conception (using donor sperm or fertility treatment), or if there is agreement from the child’s mother (and the conditions under Section 43 Human Embryology and Fertilisation Act 2008 are met), both women are automatically legal par - ents and both have PR unless it is shown that the other party did not consent. How the non-birth mother can obtain PR This can be obtained as follows: • being named on the birth certificate – for children born after 1 September 2009, if the correct forms are signed at a licensed clinic, the non-birth mother can be named on the birth certificate and obtain PR; • PR agreement – with the consent of all those with PR; • court order – the non-birth mother can apply to the court for a PR order (the court will consider the child’s best interests); • adoption – if the non-birth mother adopts the child (for example, if she is not a legal parent), she will obtain full PR; and • child arrangements order – if the court makes an order that the child “lives with” the non-birth mother, she will obtain PR for as long as the order is in force. See Section 43 of the Human Embryology and Ferti - lisation Act 2008. Subject to Section 45 (2) to (4), the other woman is to be treated as a parent of the child if no man is treated by virtue of Section 35 as the father of the child and no woman is treated by virtue of Section 42 as a parent of the child, but: • the embryo or the sperm and eggs were placed in W, or W was artificially inseminated, in the course of treatment services provided in the United King - dom by a person to whom a licence applies; • at the time when the embryo or the sperm and eggs were placed in W, or W was artificially insemi - nated, the agreed female parenthood conditions (as set out in Section 44) were met in relation to another woman, in relation to treatment provided to W under that licence; and
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