There are a lot of facets to parenthood, but in the eyes of Michigan law, parenthood is a legal relationship. Under the law, parents have rights and responsibilities toward their children. Biological parents who live with their children may not have to think about them very often, but the legal aspects of parenthood become clear when the parents split up…
Children can have strong ties with individuals that are not biologically related to them. In matter where a child is living with a parent and their new spouse, it is easy for the child to look at their new stepparent as something more. For some children, a stepparent has a more significant role than the other biological parent has. Moreover,…
In a move that could have far-reaching effects and establish legal precedents in Michigan and other states, a state Supreme Court ruled in favor of a woman who donated an egg cell which was used to artificially inseminate her partner, with the two women separating after the child’s birth. There was disagreement on whether state laws prohibit anonymous egg or…
A Michigan man who fathered a child with a married woman is contesting a law that allowed the woman to deny him his parental rights. The man is questioning the constitutionality of the statute, which grants mothers significant discretion in deciding whether biological fathers can claim paternity rights following the birth of a child conceived during an adulterous affair. Michigan…
The Michigan Department of Human Services’ Child Protective Services took protective custody of three children after they were discovered during a drug raid by local police. Although the three children of undisclosed ages were only taken in temporary custody, the 27-year-old mother of the children will likely lose custody if she is convicted of the drug-related charges against her. Michigan…